Cause for rebellion
In the event Congress passes a law stating that I am not allowed to fast forward through commercials on my TiVo, it will be cause for insurrection.
Remember, I do this to entertain me, not you.
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November 16th, 2004 at 5:48 pm
Two things TiVo lacks, that I wish it had: Rather than fast-forwarding through commercials, why not a button that skips ahead 30 seconds with each press? There’s already an “instant replay” button that skips back 8 seconds with each press.
Also, my old (pre-TiVo) DirecTV tuner had a great little feature called “skip.” If you were watching live TV and hit a commercial break, you could hit the “skip” button and each time you did, it would add 30 seconds to a timer. Once the timer was set, you could channel surf all over the place, and when the timer expired, it would automatically bring you back to the cannel you had been watching. Surf during the commercials, and when the commercial break ends, you’re automatically transported back without missing any of your show.
/TiVo rant
November 16th, 2004 at 6:48 pm
What gives you the right to dictate the terms under which you’re permitted to use someone else’s property? The people producing the TV shows are making you a specific offer: you can watch these shows, but you can skip through our commercials. If you don’t like the deal, then don’t watch.
November 17th, 2004 at 11:02 am
Tom: I think there’s still a hack to get the TiVo remote to do 30 second jumps. Check the TiVo forums.
November 17th, 2004 at 11:44 am
tivo will soon start placing pop up bill boards when you fast foward.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=2026&ncid=2026&e=1&u=/latimests/20041117/ts_latimes/tivowillnolongerskippastadvertisers
I have the comcast dvr..same damn thing as tivo and you get a FREE box. the service is only $9 a month…+ no pop up ads!
November 17th, 2004 at 3:01 pm
hell i stopped watching tv two years ago.
the only show i watch are, survior and 24.
both of those are on DVR at a friends and we fast forward thrugh the commericals.
November 17th, 2004 at 5:16 pm
Stormy:
First, I assume you meant to say “can’t skip…” Second, are you suggesting that TV show producers have a right to immobilize us before the TV, Clockwork Orange style, and make us watch the commercials? Really, what’s the practical difference between fast forwarding through commercials and, say, getting up and leaving the room during a commercial break, or changing the channel away during the breaks?
What this amounts to is someone trying to oppose technology that would make it easier to avoid the commercials, but commercial avoidance happens all the time, anyway.
In any case, within the next ten years, I expect you’ll see commercials as we know them start to disappear, in favor of product placement within the very shows you’re watching. The marketing firm for Absolut vodka worked with the producers of Sex and the City to produce an entire show centered around an Absolut-based cocktail. I expect that to become the norm.
November 17th, 2004 at 5:20 pm
Umm, SD, so are you saying that once I buy a book or record a movie (still legal, I might add), I cannot skip to the end to see who did it or fast forward through scenes I have already seen? Are you arguing that television producers have a right to force me to watch a show in only the fashion they approve of? Are you really arguing that a private entity has the right to force me to act in a certain fahion within the confines of my own home?
November 18th, 2004 at 4:21 am
They’d ban going to the bathroom or getting a snack from the kitchen during commercials if they could get away with it.
“I guess there’s a certain amount of tolerance for going to the bathroom. But if you formalize it and you create a device that skips certain second increments, you’ve got that only for one reason, unless you go to the bathroom for 30 seconds. They’ve done that just to make it easy for someone to skip a commercial.”
–Jamie Kellner, chairman and CEO of Turner Broadcasting