PVRs won't hit the mainstream for years

Ed Bott: PVRs won't hit the mainstream for years:

If you own a TiVo, or a Media Center PC, or a PVR from your cable company, you're part of an elite. A new research report from Accenture says that the percentage of U.S. homes with personal video recorders will increase by 500% in the next four years, but even in 2009 more than half of U.S. homes still won't have the equipment to record, pause, or time-shift TV.

Interesting summation of an Accenture study showing PVR adoption is probably slower than we think. I'm not entirely surprised as I never really thought about PVRs taking over the majority of homes for quite a while. Most people I talk to have heard of and want a TiVo or TiVo-like device, but most are wary of adding more complexity to their previously simple TV watching lifestyle. I really think the key to PVR adoption is making it nearly free and making the interface as easy as possible to use. Right now we don't have that: easy to use TiVo is costly, and free cable company PVRs have dreadful interfaces.

The results of this study also shouldn't detract advertisers from going after PVR owners -- right now that small elite group is a marketer's dream. Highly educated, highly paid, and ready to plunk money down on things like fancy TVs and PVRs.

Comments

[Jason Coleman]

To add to Matt's summary on why advertisers might want (and in fact, do want) to go after PVR owners, I'd say that these users tend to be trend setters amongst their family and friends. They are usually the ones making the recommendations about what tech products to buy and how to use tech to solve needs.

[Randle]

Matt, Matt, Matt. You know better than to say the cableco's PVR is free. It isn't free. It isn't even close to being free. They charge a monthly lease fee for it, just like they charge for their STB. Some cablecos also charge a "PVR" fee on top of the traditional STB fee.

What you meant to say was that anyone with an existing STB can swap out for a PVR for very little additional cost. However, with almost half of cable subs still basic cable only, i.e. no STB, a PVR from their cableco is not free.

[Mike D.]

I think there is one reason and one reason only that PVR uptake has been slower than expected: You simply don't know how much you need it until you try it. A couple of years ago, a few of my friends were crowing on and on about how they loved their Tivos and my response was basically "Cool, I'm happy for you." And I'm a pretty early-adopter type of guy... not to mention a major TV addict.

Not until I actually sat in a friend's living room and watched him use the thing was I instantly hooked. I think the problem is one of education. A lot of people still think of PVRs as "the device you can pause live TV with". Big whoop.

[Mike]

I didnt see a mention anywhere if this 40% is of all households, households with tv, or of cable sattelite households

[Ed Bott]

The study said 40% of U.S. homes, which is for all intents and purposes U.S. homes with televisions. (What percent of U.S. homes don't have at least one TV? Way less than 1%, I'd wager.)

[ChicagoTom]

I tend to agree with Mide D's sentiements.
The average person who watches TV doesn't really get the convenience of PVRs until they see it for themselves in action. I was one of those guys.

I thought it was a nice concept but nothing revolutionary! Until a good friend of mine got one. That was when I was truly able to see how much it really could change the way I watch TV. My biggest obstacle was the price. Luckily soon after DirectTV had a decent offer that made it cheaper than a stand-alone TiVo and offered 2 tunes. At which point it became a no-brainer.

Once I got one, then another 2 friends of mine came over and saw what it offered to me and they ran out and got one for themselves.

Words just don't do justice to what TiVo does the to your TV viewing experience.

[RvD]

I was one of the first to have a Tivo, and have recently switched to the Comcast PVR. True, the interface and capabilities aren't up to Tivo standards, but the interface is not 'dreadful'.

As far as price comparison (cost on top of cable/satellite box):
2 Tivo series 1: $19.90 / month
2 Comcast PVR's: $ 9.90 / month

The feature that made me switch to Comcast was the ability record HD. Not having a standalone Tivo that records HD is going to cost Tivo dearly.

[RvD]

I was one of the first to have a Tivo, and have recently switched to the Comcast PVR. True, the interface and capabilities aren't up to Tivo standards, but the interface is not 'dreadful'.

As far as price comparison (cost on top of cable/satellite box):
2 Tivo series 1: $19.90 / month
2 Comcast PVR's: $ 9.90 / month

The feature that made me switch to Comcast was the ability record HD. Not having a standalone Tivo that records HD is going to cost Tivo dearly.

[dennis]

One of the confusing things for me is how cable companies price. I am a Comcast subscriber and have "HBO Silver" plus three digital cable boxes, probably one box too many. The monthly fee is $94.31.

If I turn in one of the digital boxes, the monthly fee will be $87.63.

If I REPLACE one of the digital boxes with a Comcast DVR, the monthly price will be $104.26.

If I ADD a comcast DVR to the three digital boxes I already have, the monthly price will be $107.76.

If I keep only one digital box and add one DVR, the monthly price will be $94.40. (That's what she said --- what I take that to mean is that, given digital service, two regular digital boxes are worth one DVR box).

The oddness of the above is partly because the pricing algorithm is partly "service" based and partly "box rental" based. If I understand correctly, "DVR Service" costs $9.95 per month and box rental is $3.50 per month.

You may ask what "DVR Service" is, given that I already receive (but don't decrypt/display) the program info data stream.

I can't answer that. I do know that I would be happy to reduce the number of channels I get by 2/3 or so since most I have no interest in, but no one is talking about that.

What I think is really going on here is that a corporate marketing and pricing decision has been made that people in my neghborhood should be spending roughly $80-$100 per month on digital TV and the pricing algorithms are calculated to that target.

I'd be happy to build my own PVR but, based on what I've learned here, I don't have the skill.

[dennis]

One of the confusing things for me is how cable companies price. I am a Comcast subscriber and have "HBO Silver" plus three digital cable boxes, probably one box too many. The monthly fee is $94.31.

If I turn in one of the digital boxes, the monthly fee will be $87.63.

If I REPLACE one of the digital boxes with a Comcast DVR, the monthly price will be $104.26.

If I ADD a comcast DVR to the three digital boxes I already have, the monthly price will be $107.76.

If I keep only one digital box and add one DVR, the monthly price will be $94.40. (That's what she said --- what I take that to mean is that, given digital service, two regular digital boxes are worth one DVR box).

The oddness of the above is partly because the pricing algorithm is partly "service" based and partly "box rental" based. If I understand correctly, "DVR Service" costs $9.95 per month and box rental is $3.50 per month.

You may ask what "DVR Service" is, given that I already receive (but don't decrypt/display) the program info data stream.

I can't answer that. I do know that I would be happy to reduce the number of channels I get by 2/3 or so since most I have no interest in, but no one is talking about that.

What I think is really going on here is that a corporate marketing and pricing decision has been made that people in my neghborhood should be spending roughly $80-$100 per month on digital TV and the pricing algorithms are calculated to that target.

I'd be happy to build my own PVR but, based on what I've learned here, I don't have the skill.

[Jeff]

I've wanted a TiVo ever since I realized how MUCH of my fav shows I was missing because VCRs are complete and total crap. My VCR was such a bitch to set that I gave up. I absolutely love being able to say "Hey, I'm going to want to watch that" , then pressing a button or two and having that show when it airs.

[Paul in NJ]

As much as I want TV timeshifting, I don't want any device that comes with a monthly fee for a TV Guide-type service. I'd settle for a DVR/PVR that I can use with VCR+ -- a high-tech VCR. TiVo features are nice, but I can live without 'em.