Jack Smith was online Thursday, Nov. 11, 2004, at 1:00 p.m. EST to discuss his TiVo experience.
As vice president of product strategy for 24/7 Real Media, a pioneer in interactive marketing and technology, Jack Smith closely tracks developments in new media technologies. Prior to joining 24/7 Real Media, he reviewed, tested and recommended technologies for a Fortune 500 global staffing company. He began his career in media as a radio programmer and on-air talent. In addition to writing for several web-based publications, he has built Web sites and hosted an annual New Years Eve television show. Jack’s love affair with technology began as a young boy with the videogame, Pong, and became out of control with the Radio Shack TRS-80. His latest tech obsessions are personal handheld devices and interactive television.
The transcript follows.
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Newsweek.com: Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to Viewpoint on Newsweek.com on MSNBC. Our guest today is TiVo expert Jack Smith. Jack has spent two weeks with TiVo and shares his experiences in this blog. Jack is with us today to answer your questions about TiVo. Let's get started!
Jack Smith: Thanks. Great to be here.
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Arlington, Va.: Where can I buy a TiVo box?
Jack Smith: TiVo boxes can be purchased online at TiVo.com. Or you can pick them up from Best Buy, Target or many other retailers.
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San Francisco, Calif.: Jack,
Thank you for your blog, I found it very useful in determining whether or not TiVo was a product I needed to introduce into my home, which I believe it is. Would you even consider any other technology to be comparable to TiVo in scope of product service ?
Jack Smith: Early on in the blog, I mentioned that I had been using the cable company's DVR. I had a couple of big problems with that technology: 1) It didn't have any brains. In other words, I watched a lot of TV but it never learned anything about what I like. 2) It was slow. So, the TiVo experience has been great so far. I love it. Can't wait for some of the new features that are coming up.
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Washington, D.C.: Hey Jack. What do you watch and/or TiVo on Thursday nights??
Jack Smith: haha. On Thursday nights, I generally watch what I TiVo'd on Wednesday night. ;) (That's one of the great things about having TiVo.) This is normally America's Next Top Model, The Daily Show and, maybe, Letterman. On Thursday, I normally TiVo The Apprentice but don't watch it until later.
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Washington, D.C.: Do I need to have digital cable or satellite in order to use the TiVo service?
Jack Smith: You don't need a cable or satellite to use TiVo. I live in New York and there are so many over air channels that, even if I didn't have cable, I would still have a lot of TV to watch. One of the cool things I figured out during TiVo's guided setup was that I could hide all of the channels I knew I would never watch. My cable company gives me about 3,456,286 channels (or so it seems). But I don't speak Spanish, watch the NBA or need to shop on one of the 15 shopping channels. So, I told TiVo that I didn't receive those channels. This has made my cable experience 1,000 times better.
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Johannesburg, Minn.: When is the Netflix deal happening? Forget pay-per-view if you have any movie you want coming into your TiVo!
Jack Smith: haha. I can't wait for that. TiVo has been really tight lipped about it though. So, I don't have more details.
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Rockville, Md.: Seems like more and more folks are using TiVo. What do you think is the future of television advertising?
Jack Smith: Advertising always morphs to fit the programming. Back when TV first started, a show host would break from programming to talk about the sponsor. Then came the spot breaks during shows. TiVo definitely changes the way people watch TV. I imagine that more and more advertising will be integrated into content.
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San Francisco, Calif.: Just wondering ... How much does it cost?
Jack Smith: TiVo boxes vary in price depending on how many hours of programming it will hold as well as any other advanced features it may have such as a DVD recorder. You can visit TiVo.com to check the pricing for the box and the service.
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New York, N.Y.: Hey Jack ... what would you say to someone who likes the idea of using TiVo but ultimately is not ready to introduce yet another layer of complexity to an already hectic life. Does it really let you streamline your free time or do you get so caught up in hotwiring the thing to do what you want that it ulitmately works against you?
Jack Smith: It does actually make your life easier. I set the TiVo without using the manual -- though I would never suggest doing that -- and once I set it up it works simply. No hotwiring necessary.
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Charlotte, N.C.: If you have two Tivos (say, one in the bedroom and one in the living room), can you share shows between the two?
Jack Smith: Yes, one of the features that I haven't talked about in the blog yet is the multi-room viewing. With TiVos hooked into your network you can share programs between the two TiVos.
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Hilliard, Ohio: I've heard that you can now program your TiVo DVR over the internet. Do I have to have broadband to do that, or can I use dial-up?
Jack Smith: Yes. Very cool feature. Head out to TiVo.com, search for programs, select the ones you want to watch and TiVo will add it the the ToDo list next time your box accesses the service.
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Chicago, Ill.:
Do all Tivo players come with the multimedia features you described, such as being able to do a video slide show on your television?
Jack Smith: All the new TiVo Series 2 TiVo players have this multimedia capability. I have the 40 hour version that came directly from TiVo and added a network card that I picked up at Circuit City.
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Seattle, Wash.: I've been hearing about Tivo-to-go but am not sure what it is, can you explain?
Jack Smith: TiVoToGo will allow users to take their favorite TV programs with them wherever they go. Pretty simple. You'll be able to move any recorded programs from TiVo to any laptop or desktop PC. SWEET!!! So, you can take any programs you've recorded on the road.
No date has been set for this but I can't wait.
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New York, N.Y.: Was TiVo correct in the shows they predicted you would like?
Jack Smith: The first few days were surprisingly accurate. There were a couple of shows that I didn't like but I gave them Thumbs Down and they went way. Since then, it's gotten better. There are always random things that it records but 9 times out of 10 they end up being pretty cool.
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Woodlands, Tex.: Did it take a long time to learn how to use it?
Jack Smith: If you've read the TiVo blog, you'll quickly realize that I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer. If I can learn this much about it in two weeks, it's a snap.
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Truckee, Calif.: Can TiVo record shows from an earlier time zone? Can I get Letterman from the N.Y. broadcast and watch it at 9:00? This would be great to have all the Jeopardy answers.
Jack Smith: I know that some of the satellite services offers east coast TV station affiliates to their west coast subscribers. In this west coast scenario, you'd be able to TiVo Jeopardy from WNBC in New York, watch it when you get home from work, head to a bar with your friends and win big money beating them at Jeopardy. TiVo has all of the programming information for the satellite company.
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Anchorage, Alaska:
Just wanted to say thank you to TiVo for keeping us all a little more sane up here. As you can imagine, having stores of great quality content helps the winter go by a little easier. Thanks to TiVo for the wonderful invention.
Jack Smith: Cheers to that.
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Chico, Calif.: Does TiVo work better with cable systems or satellite systems like DirecTV?
Jack Smith: TiVo works equally well with either.
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Washington, D.C.: Does TiVo let me skip commercials?
Jack Smith: You have the ability to fast forward at 3 different speeds 3X, 18X or a blazing 60X with TiVo. So, you can skip through any content you like.
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Philadelphia, Pa.: Is it true that you can find shows by keyword?
Jack Smith: It's true. It's true. If you like Martin Sheen, you can setup a WishList that will automatically tape all Martin Sheen movies.
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Brooklyn, N.Y.: How did it fit into your TV set-up? Did you have to buy any additional equipment to make it work?
Jack Smith: Everything was there to get TiVo hooked into my cable box, stereo and TV. I did need to buy a network adapter to connect it to my home network. I did this so I could access my Photos and Music from my home PC via TiVo.
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Alameda, Calif.: Any idea about the "life" of a TiVo box? I am looking at buying one and if I get the lifetime deal I wonder how long it will last.
Jack Smith: Good question. I'm not sure what the average life is. Though one of my close friends has a TiVo that's several years old. He really wants to get some of the new features like Multi Room viewing but he considers his old TiVo like an antique car.
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Milwaukee, Wis.: I've heard about Tivo's "smarts" -- it picks shows for you. How does it do it? What if you don't like what it picks?
Jack Smith: TiVo has a team of 684 rocket scientists who created a giant computer ... only kidding. There is some rocket science involved on the backend but you never have to deal with it. TiVo mainly relys on you telling it what you like and don't like. Over time, it gets more and more accurate. If you don't like what it picks for you, then give it a Thumbs Down and that program goes away.
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New Orleans, La.: Hello Jack,
Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. I have to confess, I'm a huge junkie of TiVo and have been once since it entered the market. Do you envision a radio component TiVo going forward? Many thanks.
Jack Smith: Interesting. You'd have to send a note to TiVo on that one. One thing that you could do is have TiVo record some of the radio channels that companies like Music Choice provide over cable.
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Minot, N.D.: Can I record one program and watch another with Tivo?
Jack Smith: Yes. TiVo provides very clear instructions on how to do this.
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San Rafael, Calif.: Hi Jack, I use my cell phone as my home phone, therefore I don't have a land line. Do I need to have one to use TiVo or can I get programming another way? Thanks!
Jack Smith: You need a land line to complete guided setup. Take your TiVo to your neighbor or parent's house and run the guided setup. After that, you can connect to the TiVo service via the Internet with a network adapter.
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Boston, Mass.: What happens if TiVo fills up while its recording something? I'd hate to lose the last 10 minutes of Lost.
Jack Smith: Don't worry. Lost is safe with TiVo. TiVo will delete an older program to accomodate the shows you want to record. You like Lost? I meant to set up a Season Pass for that but haven't gotten around to it.
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Staten Island, N.Y.: Hi Jack:
I have a broadband line and want to hook up my TiVo. I know you mentioned a network card, can you explain?
Jack Smith: TiVo can connect to a wired or wireless network via a network card. If you head to tivo.com, you can get a list of compatible network cards.
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Palo Alto, Calif.: Does the Tivo box come in different styles, colors, etc.?
Jack Smith: You can check availability at TiVo.com. BTW, when you're out there, take a look at the Humax combo TiVo/DVD recorder. This is the coolest gizmo I've seen in a long time!
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Newsweek.com: Unfortunately, our hour is up, but we’ve learned lots about TiVo. Thanks to Jack Smith and everyone who tuned in!
Jack Smith: Thanks everyone for the great questions. Thanks to TiVo for helping me watch TV more efficiently.
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