Our friends at TiVo have announced "narrower fourth quarter losses," which I guess is a good sign, though not as good as actually showing a profit some day might be. They've also announced a new pricing structure which would basically give you your TiVo box for free if you committed to a long-term service contract. You can do the math on this yourself and see how good a deal this is. Of greatest interest is the statement that they're doing away with the lifetime price of $299…which I guess you have to do if you want people to pay $369 for a two-year contract.
The way it worked was that you'd buy your TiVo machine and then if you paid $299, you'd have lifetime service on that machine for as long as it still ran. This was not only a good deal, it was an incentive to keep that TiVo machine up and operating as long as possible instead of purchasing a new one. When my office TiVo seemed to be wearing out, I took it to these people and they installed a new hard disk — two, actually — and extended the lifetime of the machine with lifetime service. If the option of lifetime service on a new TiVo is going away, that may make me really try to keep this one going. It may also make some people want to sign up for it in a hurry, though many may not; not with the new Series 3 TiVo machines promised for later this year.
Also, TiVo has announced a new arrangement with Verizon where if you're a Verizon subscriber, you'll be able to program your TiVo from your cell phone. This article will tell you more about it, though it omits the fact that this service will cost five bucks a month.