Networks teaking show start/end times, messing up PVRs

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Networks teaking show start/end times, messing up PVRs

NBC started it last year, as a way to eek out a bit more advertising dollar per big ticket show, with the side effect of messing up TiVos across the land, but it looks like other networks are jumping onto the same bandwagon.

This is why TiVo really needs to do dual-tuner standalone units.

by Matt Haughey December 2, 2004 in News

Comments

Already on slashdot.

Posted by: KirbyMeister at Dec 2, 2004 1:12:02 PM

That is really idiotic. It's bad for all viewers, not just PVR users. You wind up missing the opening bit on a show on some other channel. But I guess the networks don't mind that either since it gives you incentive to stay tuned.

Posted by: Brad Choate at Dec 2, 2004 1:35:30 PM

This would be a much smaller issue if Tivo could just record the remainder of the show if small overlap exists between two shows. The result would be getting one complete show and one show with the beginning or end cut off, which in my opinion is better missing the second show completely (although still frustrating).

Posted by: Clay at Dec 2, 2004 1:44:33 PM

I would not mind shows going a minute or two over the mark except that TiVo will not let me record the following show. It lets me adjust the record start time earlier, but not later. So if I tell TiVo to stop recording Show A one minute after the hour, Show B will not record at all. Give me the option to start recording Show B later as well as earlier. Missing the first minute of a show is, to me, often better than missing the last minute. "The man who killed him was"

Posted by: Rocket J Squirrel at Dec 2, 2004 1:46:57 PM

There's been plenty of discussion on the TiVo Community forums about this, but I have yet to see concrete proof that this is an explicit tactic to thwart DVRs (which Matt isn't claiming either) and not just an unfortunate byproduct of their attempt to get more ad dollars and also make viewers miss the first minute of the next show and thus not channel hop, or get them to tune in 1 minute early, so there's no other show to channel hop to yet.

It's definitely annoying, even with a dual tuner TiVo certain days now that ABC joined the fray (Lost/Smallville/West Wing e.g.), but there's partial relief by setting up a manual timeperiod record for the date/time/channel minus the first minute.

Posted by: Joost Schuur at Dec 2, 2004 2:16:13 PM

The best way to handle it is to do what I did a long time ago -- stop watching network TV. If they screw with your recordings, dump them from your season passes. There is enough quality programming further up the dial that we don't need to put up with this crap anymore.

Posted by: Phelps at Dec 2, 2004 2:17:06 PM

I agree with the dual tuners ... this, plus the general desire to avoid conflicts, is the reason that my first TiVo was quickly followed by a second. I have two 40-hr boxes and, for me, it's more than enough storage [for what I could ever hope to watch given my personal schedule].

Posted by: Geof F. Morris at Dec 2, 2004 2:57:51 PM

Just want to add that i completely agree with Clay: "...if Tivo could just record the remainder of the show if small overlap exists between two shows." Even without the scheduling shenanigans by networks, it would make a lot of sense for tivo to record the remainder of a show in the case of a partial overlap, especially if you have extra room on your disk. This would be extremely useful for sporting event season passes. For example, if a game and a higher-ranked show start at the same time, tivo currently will not record any part of the game. I would love for tivo to record automatically the rest of the game after the higher-ranked program ends. This feature could be an option on season passes so those who don't like it, don't have to use it. Also, partially-recorded shows could be clearly labeled as such (so a viewer knows before watching it that part of it will be missing).

Posted by: x at Dec 2, 2004 3:07:16 PM

I think rather than thwarting us, they are trying to fight back against the channel changing. I recently set up an SP to record Nightline. Not because I want to watch it all the time but because I want Tivo to change the channel off of The Terrible Tonight Show, which I'll get sucked into watching if I leave it on. What happens is that TTS starts about 30 seconds before 11:35 -- enough that I can see who the guests are and they hope, override the channel change.

On the other side, popular shows should delay the start of the show (not the start time). I manually record The Daily Show at 10:30 in the morning. It never fails that I see anywhere from 20-60 seconds of stuff that isn't the Daily Show. Comedy Central should sell 15 second commercials here and start the show at 10:30:15. Who would bother to FF at this point? You just watch it.

Posted by: Blake at Dec 2, 2004 6:36:18 PM

This really bugged me when NBC did it, so I deleted my season passes.

Let them grab the neilsen numbers from my Tivo and find one less season pass.

It is time to stop getting dicked around by the networks and remind them who is really boss.

If we stop watching the shows, the ad rates drop.

Vote with your remote!

Posted by: Frank Ledo at Dec 2, 2004 10:45:38 PM

I am not as much on board as you guys are. I love the network programming. So far I haven't run into any problems. Usually monday & wednesday are my only network nights and those seem to run pretty smoothly. But these networks need to stop running 1 minute extra..is one minute worth it?

Posted by: Steve at Dec 3, 2004 4:15:41 AM

I simple don't understand why Tivo can't do "negative padding". People have wanted this feature for years and I have never heard a good Tivo response. Maybe their scheduler only works in 5 minute blocks and can't handle it?

In truth, I don't really care that Lost runs a minute over -- I can work around that. I want to easily make the show that runs after it start one minute later, and it's just impossible. Even a manual date/time recording has the problem of 5 minute granularity, so you miss 4 minutes you don't need to.

Posted by: Scott at Dec 3, 2004 11:31:18 AM

But it isn't merely for 'extra advertising dollars.' It can't be.

If it is, then explain why - during the broadcast of the program itself - there are periodic, semi-transparent ads in the lower half of the screen.

(Used to be the left or right lower corners, but now WB is displaying program 'wipes' during their prime time slots.)

Posted by: Daniel McAndrew at Dec 3, 2004 1:51:46 PM

Matt: t_w_eaking

Enjoying your blog!

Posted by: Patrick at Dec 3, 2004 2:23:37 PM

Saturday afternoon...just saw you on Next@CNN and headed over to the site.

Posted by: Ian Evans at Dec 4, 2004 12:51:33 PM

Pretty soon people just WON'T want to watch TV anymore!! Give it about 5-10 years.. TV will be CLUTTERED with ads selling you stuff (compliments of the soon TiVo popups). Ads showing you want's coming up next (compliments of many networks DURING their actual programming). And now ads are interfering in what you record. Some of my shows like EL Raymond, According to Jim, George Lopez, etc.. get chopped. Some of them just CAN'T be extended or other shows won't record.

When is someone going to put their foot down!? TV advertising reminds me of Web advertising. Remember back when Web pages didn't have 10+ ads and no popups?? Advertisers sure know how to destroy a good thing!!

Posted by: Bob at Dec 4, 2004 3:42:54 PM

I've started a blog to cover this issue:

http://stevegarfield.blogs.com/tivob0rking/

Posted by: Steve Garfield at Dec 6, 2004 5:58:10 AM