The 2012 Super Bowl has come and gone, while you’re left to clean up the beer cans, wash off that face paint, and get back to planning your next pivot. The game itself provided more than enough excitement, with the New York Football Giants eking out a win over the star-crossed Tom Bradys and Bill Belichicks. This year’s Big Game also marked the first time that a Super Bowl was streamed live, legally, and for free on the Interwebs. While online viewers met with a number of shortcomings, the streaming was — for the most part — a success. (Read our review here.)

The Super Bowl also proved to yet again be the catalyst of rabid activity on social media channels, especially Twitter, which, at its most active, saw more than 10,000 tweets per second. A record for sporting events (even though this record seems to be broken every three months.)

While some watch the Super Bowl for their love of a good game of pigskin, others flip on the game for the halftime entertainment or the slew of “creative” commercials airing for the first time in front of a ready-made audience of millions.

The ad content this year left much to be desired (in my humble opinion), though there were some highlights, like an appearance by some faces familiar to the tech industry, thanks to Best Buy’s spotlighting of a few mobile innovators, among them Philippe Kahn, Ray Kurzweil, Instagram Founder Kevin Systrom, and the guys behind Shazam, and Words With Friends, and so on.

Of course, in the wrap up of every Super Bowl, the people want to get a taste of which commercials were the most popular. This morning Hulu released its list of winners, and it looks like nostalgia took the blue ribbon. Of the ads that ran during game time, Honda’s “Matthew’s Day Off” (a Ferris Bueller tribute) just narrowly edged out Volkswagen’s “The Dog Strikes Back,” with the “most liked” ad on Hulu AdZone being Volkswagen’s “The Bark Side” preview ad.

Below, you can find the top results across categories, including “Overall Most Liked Ads” and “Funniest Ads.” For more of Hulu’s categories, check out their release here.

Overall Most Liked Ads

1. Volkswagen: The Bark Side Teaser
2. Honda: Matthew’s Day Off — Extended
3. Volkswagen: The Dog Strikes Back
4. Skechers: GOrun Mr. Quiggly
5. Dannon Oikos: The Tease
6. Chevrolet: 2012
7. M&M’s: It’s That Kind of Party
8. Audi: Vampire Party
9. E*Trade: Fatherhood
10. Acura: Transactions — Extended

Funniest Ads

1. Acura: Transactions
2. Hulu Plus: Hulubratory
3. Chevrolet: Happy Grad
4. Honda: Matthew’s Day Off
5. Chevrolet: 2012

Of course, Hulu is not the only service/company to track this year’s most popular commercials. This morning, TiVo also shared it’s commercial results, which is of note as it claims to be the “only second-by-second audience research service to rank the top ten commercials based on actual commercial retention and viewership” relative to the Super Bowl’s viewership numbers. Interestingly, while many brands like to preview or tease their ads days before the Super Bowl actually airs, the top three did not preview their commercials online before the big game. Take that, Internet?

Though it may not come as a surprise, it’s disappointing not to see many tech companies (or tech-related ads) in either of these top ten lists, with the exception of Hulu and E*Trade. It seems that the Super Bowl came and went without the same controversy (or negative reaction) stirred up by GoDaddy, Salesforce.com, and Groupon last year, the former two ranking high in the “Most Disliked” category last year.

But, without further ado, here are the top ten according to TiVo:

1. Doritos: “Man’s Best Friend”
2. M&Ms: “Ms. Brown”
3. Doritos: “Sling Baby”
4. Pepsi: “King’s Court”
5. Volkswagen: “The Dog Strikes Back”
6. NFL New Fantasy Game: “Win a Million Bucks”
7. Acura NSX: “Seinfeld”
8. FIAT 500: “Supermodel”
9. Chevy Camaro: “Happy Grad”
10. E*Trade Baby: “Fatherhood”

What do you think? Weigh in with your favorites.

Addendum: For those paying attention, Yottaa has done a wrap up of all the which sites went down during the Super Bowl ad blitz. Coke took a hit, as did Acura and Act of Valor. Check out their blog post here.

TiVo this morning said that internal research shows only 38 percent of their users watch live television, with nearly two thirds watching on-demand video or ‘delayed’ TV. Among TiVo viewers who use broadband connected service such as Netflix, YouTube and Hulu Plus, live TV viewership has even dropped to 27 percent, the company asserts.

Though TiVo users are hardly a representative sample if you want to look at usage data of your average TV viewer in the United States, the findings are remarkable and suggest that the consumption of recorded TV and Internet-delivered programming is surpassing live TV viewership much more rapidly than anticipated.

TiVo’s research findings are of course self-serving, but the company claims it gathered data from tracking anonymous usage across some two million devices on a second-by-second basis.

The trend is obvious.

For your further reading pleasure:

We Are Going To See A Lot More Original TV On The Web In 2012

12 Things That Won’t Happen In Online Video in 2012

The TiVo Premiere Elite is the TV watcher’s Bugatti Veyron. It’s their Lance Armstrong, their Empire Strikes Back. It’s the Budweiser of set-top box DVRs. The TiVo Premiere Elite is simply the best recording and playback device ever made and yes, I just called Budweiser the best beer of all time.

The quad turner device quietly leaked over the summer, followed by an official TiVo announcement in September. At that time the company failed to announce the price and availability but the product page later reveled the $499 price. TiVo just took to the wires to announce the Premiere Elite is available starting today. Your king has arrived, TV nerds.

Nothing has changed since the Premiere Elite’s announcement. The DVR still features four tuners and a 2TB hard drive for up to 300 hours of content storage. Digital cable is required and unlike every previous TiVo, it lacks an ATSC tuner for over-the-air signals. The device can output signals up to 1080p and is THX Certified for audio and video. The backside houses two USB 2.0 ports and an eSATA interface for the TiVo wireless adapters and external storage, respectively.

The Premiere Elite is powered by the Series4 platform that offers a fluid interface along with rich internet media support. TiVo built support directly into the OS for Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video, YouTube and Pandora. It’s simply the most complete internet media streaming platform available outside of a computer.

The TiVo Premiere Elite hits Best Buy Magnolia stores and select custom AV installers today. At $499 the DVR is rather competitive against the $299 1TB, two tuner Premiere XL, but it’s crazy expensive when priced against your cable company’s nearly free offering. TiVos still require either a $19.99 monthly or $499 lifetime subscription cost. But unlike a random Comcast box, the TiVo Premiere Elite does have some distinct advantages like the ability to record four programs at once and stream from the top Internet media sources. Quality doesn’t come cheap.

TiVo is quite proud of their DVRs – so proud, in fact, that they gave the new Tivo Premiere Elite an extra superlative, just to ensure you understand the current elite-ness of this TiVo. Other than the name, the new TiVo has Series 4 architecture (a better, faster UI) as well as space for 300 hours of programming. You can record four shows at once (if you have the right number of CableCARDs) and it supports up to 1080p recording.

At $500 for two terabytes of space it’s not too shabby but as a one-time fan of the now-diminished TiVo, I’d be loathe to recommend this over even the most annoying cable set-top box. $500 plus TiVo’s monthly fee isn’t very compelling and the box doesn’t support OTA digital, another minus. However, if you’re totally into watching four shows at once, this may be the unit for you.

TiVo Series4TM architecture
Supports digital cable, high-definition digital cable and Verizon FiOS®
THX-certified DVR, offering optimal video and audio fidelity
Outputs: HDMI, Component video, Composite video, Optical audio, Analog audio
Video output modes include: 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p
Inputs: CableCARDTM, Cable coax, Ethernet
Additional support for USB 2.0 (2 ports), eSATA for external recording space, TiVo Wireless N or G Network Adapter
2 Terabytes of recording space for up to 300 hours of recorded programming
MSRP: $499

Product Page

Insignia, Best Buy’s in-house tech brand, has just released a TV with TiVo UI built-in. Why? I suppose people didn’t want to have a separate TiVo on their CE shelves. Two great tastes that taste great together, right?

The 32-inch model sells for $499 while the 42-inch sells for $699. It’s a 1080p/120Hz LED screen with a network features as well as support for something called Rocketboost that works with Best Buy’s own sound peripherals. It’s basically a method of upsell and lock-in.

Big deal? Nah, but a $499 32-incher with TiVo (no DVR) built-in isn’t too bad and if you’re hard up for cash you can save a little money by sticking getting a TV and media player in one. You’ll note that Yahoo! also has something called Connected TV, but they’re Yahoo! so who cares? Available now, presumably in time for Back-To-School.

Product Page

Hulu Plus Launches on TiVo Premiere

Adds Instant Streaming of Thousands of Hours of Current TV Hits and Classic Programming to TiVo’s Unique Solution Combining Cable Programming
with the Best of Web Entertainment

ALVISO, Calif. – May 23, 2011 – TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in advanced television services, including digital video recorders (DVRs), for consumers, content distributors and consumer electronics manufacturers, announced that beginning today Hulu Plus™ is available via subscription* to TiVo® subscribers with retail TiVo Premiere boxes.

In celebration of Hulu Plus on TiVo Premiere, TiVo and Hulu will give six months of free Hulu Plus service to newly purchased TiVo Premiere DVRs. A free trial of Hulu Plus is also available to current TiVo Premiere customers. Visit www.tivo.com/hulu to learn more.

With the recent addition of hit shows from Comedy Central, and MTV including The Colbert Report and The Daily Show alongside popular hit shows from ABC, FOX and NBC like Modern Family, Grey’s Anatomy, Glee, Family Guy, The Office and 30 Rock, TiVo further extends its lead as the only one-box solution that integrates in one easy-to-use user interface the full complement of programming made available to users through their existing cable or fiber optic provider alongside the ever-increasing choice of broadband and on-demand offerings.

“Hulu’s mission is to help people find and enjoy the world’s premium video content when, where and how they want it. To that end, we are thrilled that today we are opening up the Hulu Plus experience to TiVo Premiere users,” says Andy Forssell, SVP of Content Acquisition and Distribution for Hulu.

Hulu Plus joins other top broadband content providers such as Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Instant Video, and BLOCKBUSTER to offer TiVo Premiere subscribers the ultimate choice in entertainment programming, all easily accessed by TiVo’s elegant user interface and iconic peanut remote control. Hulu Plus programs are easy to find by title or by browsing Hulu Plus’s network listings and genres.

TiVo’s SVP and General Manager of Content Services and Media Sales Tara Maitra added, “I’ve watched with great admiration as Hulu has built an impressive business by offering up some of the world’s greatest entertainment content on demand. As the world’s first smart DVR, TiVo Premiere brings the best entertainment from cable and the web together in one place, with one easy-to-use remote and simple search features for one truly Brilliant TV experience.”

According to recent figures from Santa Monica, Calif.-based research firm Interpret, the number of people who said they streamed a TV program increased to 41 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010. The number of TV programs streamed per respondent reached nearly nine episodes in the last three months of 2010, up 37 percent from 6.41 programs streamed in 2009.

In addition to the top hits of today, Hulu Plus offers one of the largest catalogs of television content on a streaming platform to subscribers in the U.S., including full series runs and numerous back seasons of dozens of classic shows like The X-Files, Law and Order: SVU, Arrested Development, Saturday Night Live, Miami Vice, Ugly Betty, Quantum Leap, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Roswell and Ally McBeal.

*Separate subscriptions to Hulu Plus and the TiVo Service are required to access Hulu Plus on TiVo Premiere DVRs. Broadband connection required to access Hulu Plus.

Right now, as in today before the switch, you can buy a TiVo Premiere for either $299 up front and $12.95/month or $99 and $19.99/month. Scratch the first option. The lifetime subscription fee is also changing, going from $199 to $299 and raising the overall lifetime cost of a TiVo when considering the hardware and lifetime fee from $468 to $498.

TiVo is as methodical as a CE company can be. Clearly the company ran with the two pricing schemes side-by-side as a trial and the new one bested the old model. In many ways TiVo’s new pricing matches the subsidies cell phone pricing the US consumers are very familiar with. It does however make owning a TiVo a rather costly option and could easily reach $30 a month when considering TiVo’s price, a CableCard and only one streaming service like Netflix.

Surprisingly, in these select markets, Comcast will provide and install TiVo Premiere units but the On Demand service will be available on units sold at retail as well. According to the press release, “Comcast will install TiVo Premiere set-top boxes with its cable service at no additional charge” although monthly pricing wasn’t announced.

This move does cement the TiVo Premiere as the leading 3rd party set-top DVR. There isn’t another set-top box from even service providers that offer so much content through one user interface. The TiVo Premiere features complete access to digital cable through Cable Cards as well as online offerings such as Netflix, Blockbuster and Amazon, and now select units can stream from Comcast’s robust On Demand library. Now if only TiVo can finish the HDUI so there’s a bit of continuity throughout the service.

TiVo and Comcast Team Up to Offer the First Retail Cable Set-Top With DVR That Delivers Linear TV, Broadband Content and Xfinity On Demand Library All From One Box

Comcast to Help TiVo to Promote Solution With Retail and Marketing Support

ALVISO, CA and PHILADELPHIA, PA–(Marketwire – May 9, 2011) – TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO), the creator of and a leader in television services and advertising solutions for digital video recorders (DVRs), and Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA) (NASDAQ: CMCSK), one of the nation’s leading providers of entertainment, information, and communications products and services, today announced they have entered into an agreement to enable access to Comcast’s robust library of Xfinity TV On Demand content on TiVo Premiere set-top boxes sold at retail. For the first time, Comcast customers in select markets will be able to use a TiVo Premiere box to enjoy a fully integrated offering of On Demand programs, along with linear television and a range of broadband services, all accessible through TiVo’s user interface and intuitive search capabilities.

Under the agreement, Comcast will make its Xfinity TV On Demand service accessible on TiVo Premiere set-top boxes in many of its largest markets, with the first expected to be the San Francisco Bay Area with a plan for additional markets to follow. In each of those markets Comcast and TiVo plan to partner on promotion of this new service in retail and other sales channels. Comcast will install TiVo Premiere set-top boxes with its cable service at no additional charge for its customers when the service is available in those markets.

“Adding Comcast’s On Demand library to TiVo Premiere is a fantastic win for consumers because it will offer access to the ultimate television viewing experience with the programming viewers want. Traditional TV channels, On Demand and broadband delivered content will all be accessible with TiVo’s universal search capability and TiVo’s stunning HD user-interface,” said Tom Rogers, President and CEO of TiVo Inc. “And, this partnership will make it easy for our mutual customers to enjoy both their TiVo service and Comcast’s Xfinity TV with the more than 25,000 On Demand programs it offers along with the ease of Comcast arranged installation.”

“We’re pleased to combine Comcast’s industry leading On Demand library with the innovative TiVo experience and provide our customers even more choice and convenience,” said Marcien Jenckes, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Video Services for Comcast. “Working with TiVo to allow customers to access our Xfinity TV On Demand service complements our commitment to bring any content to any device, at any time.”

DISH Network and EchoStar this morning announced that they’ve agreed to pay TiVo $500 million to settle all of their ongoing patent litigation with the digital video recorder company.

Under the terms of the settlement agreement, DISH and EchoStar will initially cough up $300 million, with the remaining $200 million distributed in six equal annual payments between 2012 and 2017.

The companies have agreed to dismiss all pending litigation with prejudice, and to dissolve all injunctions against DISH and EchoStar.

In addition, TiVo granted DISH a license under its Time Warp patent and certain related patents, for their remaining lives. Time Warp is technology that essentially allows users to record one TV program while watching another.

TiVo says it will also play a role in helping DISH Network promote the Blockbuster digital video service (DISH just acquired substantially all of the assets of Blockbuster, which went belly up in September 2010, for roughly $228 million in cash).

TiVo also granted EchoStar a life-long license under the same patents, to design and make certain DVR-enabled products solely for DISH Network and two international customers.

EchoStar, in turn, granted TiVo a license under certain DVR-related patents for TiVo-branded products.

TiVo originally sued DISH and EchoStar back in 2004 over its patented DVR technology back when the two were still a single company. They won the suit, but the court decided in May 2010 to reconsider its verdict. Two weeks ago, a federal appeals court then moved to uphold the ruling that EchoStar infringed TiVo patents, which ultimately led to today’s announcement. TiVo will hold a conference call at 9:00 AM ET today to discuss the agreement.

In related news, DISH Network this morning reported its first quarter 2011 financial results (net income of $549 million on revenues of $3.22 billion) and announced that Michael Kelly has been named president of its new subsidiary Blockbuster.

EchoStar also announced quarterly earnings this morning: net income of $17 million on revenues of $480 million.

The thought is good. I totally want a 4-tuner TiVo that would allow me to record four TV shows while watching a fifth off the hard drive. That way my wife can record all her dumb cake/little people shows while I watch the Wings destroy the Coyotes. I believe such a device would only require a big hard drive and two Multi-Stream CableCard decoders with cards.

Still, let’s remember what’s important, though. Hopefully TiVo finishes the damn HDUI before moving onto a new project. I mean, it’s been over a year and the UI still only uses one core on the Premiere’s dual-core platform. Sad.

I agree! There’s more than a few ways to cut the cord. So here we go, the six best devices listed in order of relevance that will help cut your household’s dependence on pay TV.

1) An ATSC Tuner

Believe it or not, there are glorous HD signals flying around your house right now. America switched to the all-digital ATSC broadcasting standard back in the summer of 2008, but most TV stations were beaming out HD signals well before than. Now all OTA stations are broadcasting at least a 480p signal with most opting for at least one high definition signal. Best of all, it’s free.

It’s as easy as hooking up an antenna to an ATSC tuner. All 25-inch and larger TVs sold after March 2006 should have the right tuner with smaller TV sold after March 2007 also rocking the goods. Just hook up an antenna and *BAM* you’re TV will be filled with crystal clear digital signals.

The trick is that older TVs can join in on the fun as long as HD isn’t necessarily important. Basic ATSC tuners run $40 – $60 and often include basic electronic programing guides and reminder functions but only output the digital signal at 480i. Proper HD OTA tuners are becoming increasingly harder to find as the tuners are now built into TVs.

Using OTA is a no-brainer even if you’re also using Netflix or any other streaming services. Why not, right? It’s free. If you have a flat screen, you likely have all you need minus a cheap antenna. Use AntennaWeb.org to fine tune your signal. Ironically going back to just an antenna and good ol’ TV signals are the best alternative to cable or satellite.

2) Boxee Box

The Boxee Box is fantastic for many reasons but chief among them is the ability to present TV content available online for free in a clean and sensible manner. The UI is beautiful. This alone makes the Boxee Box the de facto Internet-connected cord cutting device. It’s like Google TV…but not ruined by a network blockade.

Like most of the other streamers on the market, the Boxee Box sports a host of apps — over a hundred, actually. There’s Netflix, Vudu, YouTube Leanback, NHL, Pandora, MLB, Flickr, Reddit TV plus a ton more and they’re all accessible through the handy QWERTY keypad on the backside of the remote. There’s no messing with on-screen keyboards here. Just type and go.

The other main feature of the Boxee Box — and why it wins over hearts and souls daily — is the robust networking support. Boxee was previously known just for its media software and then a partnership with D-Link resulted in the Boxee Box. Boxee has always been about supporting the lowly downloader and the Boxee Box continues the tradition. Just point the device towards any number of folders or drives and the device will automatically display relevant metadata as well as sorting the files into genres. If all else fails, users can directly browse the network through SMB.

It’s these three key features — plus relatively low price, small footprint, QWERTY keypad, and dead-simple UI — that earns the Boxee Box the honor of best Internet-connected cord cutting device. It was even up for a 2010 Crunchie award but ultimately lost to the iPad.

3) Roku

If my Dad were to call me up and say, “Awesome, son. I want to cancel my Charter TV subscription and use Netflix streaming. I also like to watch baseball and hockey. What should I buy?”

First off, that would never happen because no one likes to watch hockey. But if my Dad — or anyone that just wants to watch Netflix or Amazon Video — were to ask what box is best. It’s the Roku XDS. Easy.

But why not the Boxee Box, you ask. Great question. While the Boxee Box is a great media streamer and my absolute favorite, the Roku is about as easy as it gets. Seriously. Anyone can use a Roku device. It might not have the fancy networking support or the QWERTY remote found with the Boxee but damn if it isn’t reliable. It’s like a TV appliance rather than a Internet streamer. It just always works — besides on the Hulu app, actually.

The low price also means that cord cutting isn’t an expensive experiment. Buyers are at most dropping $100 for the top-tier model that brings offers 802.11n, USB mass storage support and optical audio outputs over the less expensive models that still sport HDMI and 802.11g. It’s the same price as the new Apple TV, but the Roku streams lots more than just Netflix, MLB and NBA and the Amazon-like iTunes content. There are over 100 separate streaming channels including more sports, movies and TV sources. Plus, as I pointed out to one commenter in my last cord cutting post, it’s backed by a company that takes this scene seriously rather than just as a hobby. Roku has proven over and over again that they’re committed to building a rock solid platform with constant updates and a slow but steady hardware refresh cycle.

4) TiVo Premiere (Or HD)

The TiVo Premiere is the rich man’s cord cutting device. It’s not exactly the least expensive way to go about killing your cable bill and saving a few dollars a month. However, price aside, the TiVo Premiere — or even the older HD model — is one of the slickest ways to embrace Internet video and OTA signals.

TiVo has always positioned itself as a premiere stand-alone DVR and the last two generations have embraced Internet video. The built-in ATSC tuner and DVR functions makes for a potent combination. You could hook up an antenna for OTA HD content with Netflix, Blockbuster, Amazon, Disney, and a few others sitting on standby.

The hardware starts out at $100, but TiVo requires a monthly $19.99 subscription fee and a one-year commitment for access to the DVR and guide functions. Spend $299 up front and the monthly cost drops down to $12.95 — and that’s just for the 320GB option. The 1TB version is either $299 or $499 with the same monthly pricing.

Don’t let that price scare you away, though. If you can afford the box and the QWERTY slider peanut remote, it’s a very satisfying experience that’s family friendly as it’s not that much different than normal cable boxes. That’s a big win.

5) Dell Zino or Mac Mini

People have been hooking computers into TVs for decades. It’s nothing new. Boxee, Plex, XBMC and all the rest of the MPlayer derivatives along with software like MythTV and Windows Media Center allow for nearly endless options. The key with these setups is making them easy to use in a livingroom enviroment. That’s what’s evolved over the years.

There was a time that having a computer in the living room meant using with a mouse and a keyboard on the couch. It’s still best to keep a wireless set in a nearby closest although many wireless controllers are now designed just for the task. Lenovo makes a fantasic QWERTY keypad/trackball controller. The Apple Magic Trackpad works great, too.

Most computers are up to the task. HDMI makes it easy, too. Just plug and go, really. The upside is that you’re using a full-fledged computer and so none of the content is watered-down, restricted or unavailable. But the downside is that it’s a full-fledge computer and so all the annoyances come along with it: Do you really want your TV asking you to update Java? For some, the pros greatly outweighs the cons. Others should look at the dedicated devices like the Boxee Box.

Bonus) The library

Get a library card and rock out. Redbox didn’t kill Blockbuster. The library did.

Even my tiny library branch on the outskirts of impoverished Flint, Michigan has an impressive DVD and game selection. You can easily supplement OTA TV with DVDs from your local library. They generally have an impressive selection of the latest movies and TV shows all there for the taking. Don’t laugh. I’m serious. The place you used to go for Book-It can now supply your Fringe addiction.

Side note: The $99 Apple TV didn’t make this list because there are better devices for the job. Sure, it can do the task, but the Roku XDS or even WD TV Live are a better bets for the same price. They offer more functionality and web apps. It’s that simple. The only saving grace of the current Apple TV is Airplay, which is a great for households saturated with iOS devices. For everyone else, access to more streaming apps is a better value.

Motorola is suing TiVo over their infringing DVR technology, a move that is an attempt to head TiVo off at the pass after it sued Verizon over the same patents. The patents, which detail DVR technology, came from Imedia, a company that Motorola bought in the 1990s.

“TiVo is attempting to assert its patents against technology disclosed and claimed in Motorola Mobility’s patents, despite the fact that Motorola Mobility’s patents were filed more than three years before TiVo’s patents,” Motorola said in a statement.

TiVo has been increasingly litigious of late, suing EchoStar in 2007 and then AT&T and Verizon in 2009.

TiVo is now at “neutral” in trading terms and has exhibited little of the can-do spirit of its earlier years and hasn’t released a product As far as anyone can tell, they’ll be making all their money suing people from now on out, not a bad business in the short term.

via Reuters

TiVo this morning launched a free website for anyone interested in commercial ratings (particularly marketers, I guess). The ‘Ad Scorecard’ is designed to let people analyze how effective a brand’s TV commercials are at retaining viewers and how well they are performing relative to competing brands.

And by launching, I mean the company pretty much bashed every other audience and effectiveness measurement companies out there, saying they are no longer effective themselves.

The site, which is powered by TiVo’s research tool, Stop||Watch ratings service and its self-reportedly ‘second-by-second’ measurement capabilities, was launched to “demonstrate that there is more accurate information available to the media industry to help them determine the efficacy of their TV ads beyond the limited data used as the industry currency today”.

Fighting words, if you ask me.

Tara Maitra, VP of Advertising & Research Sales at TiVo, also stepped up to the plate, and in a statement deemed current methods of measuring the quantity and quality of television advertising audiences “antiquated and broken”.

Visitors of the site can compare up to three brands with national broadcast and cable TV spots against each other – after registering – to determine which one most effectively retains viewers over a timeframe ranging from one week to three months. Visitors are also shown the weekly performance for each brand broken out in a graphical chart display.

TiVo’s decision to offer a free look into its anonymous ratings data is of course meant to help marketers discover the company’s full suite of research offerings.

But at least they’re not pulling any punches upon launching the free site.

After winning a hefty $100 million from Echostar/DISH, TiVo decided to sue AT&T/UVerse for patent infringement. Not to be outdone, Microsoft countersued on behalf of AT&T, citing their own patent that describes:

a system that displays programmable information and a secure method for buying and delivering video programs.

Now, Microsoft is at it again, probably in an attempt to silence a burgeoning patent troll than anything else. This complaint calls for TiVo to:

Microsoft vs TiVo U.S. trade complaint http://d1.scribdassets.com/ScribdViewer.swf?document_id=47495712&access_key=key-1k32wefiialjtvsqq9kn&page=1&viewMode=list

via ZatzNotFunny

The TiVo iPad app does just about everything you’d imagine a TiVo iPad would. Not only does it turn the slate into a large TiVo remote where you can browse the electronic programming guide, manage recordings and to-do lists, but it also acts as a sort of IMDB discovery tool and social networking portal where you can share your love for Mad Men and The O.C.

TiVo, being the predicable and stable company that they are, didn’t seem to slip in anything new into the app from when it was announced back in November. It’s the same thing, which makes the sneak peak video also released at the same time conveniently applicable to this post as well.

TiVo

TiVo‘s are great and without doubt the best DVR on the planet. How’s it better than your standard Comcast box? It’s like the difference between LEGO and off-brand interlocking blocks. They do the same thing, but one is just so much more developed — and generally priced higher, too. However, Woot has your back and is hawking a TiVo Premiere unit over on sellout.woot.com for only $60.

Yes, you still have to pay the $12.95 per month to use the TiVo service. Yes, you have to get a CableCard from your cable provide. Yes, your cable provider will throw a fit about you asking for a Cable Card. (Fun story: I once asked for four Cable Cards and Comcast rolled two trucks and four techs including a regional supervisor to my house.) But yes, if you’re a TV watcher, there’s nothing like a TiVo. Period. sellout.woot.com

Gesture based control – Take complete control of all recordings, even dragging forward and back through a show with a simple tap or swipe
• Start watching what you want – Launch a recorded show, live TV or streaming video with the swipe of a finger
• Program guide – Browse your full-screen TV program guide without interrupting TV viewing
• Schedule – Schedule one-time recordings and Season Pass recordings from the device at home or on-the-go
• Get more from your shows and movies – Explore cast and crew and other recommendations of your favorite shows without interrupting the big screen
• Search – Search for all of your favorite TV shows, movies, actors or directors across both broadcast and broadband from Netflix, Amazon Video On Demand, and more
• Share comments with your friends – From within the TiVo Premiere App, comment and share your thoughts to Facebook or Twitter about the show you are currently watching

via CNET

Most companies fall into this bucket I’ve found. TiVo is one of them as I’ve discovered over the last week — horrible customer experience that’s going to cost them my account but that’s all I’m going to say. Instead, a few companies have surprised me lately and deserve a small shootout from this rather short soapbox of mine. D-Link nailed Customer Service 101 when I had issues with the Boxee Box this week. Logitech keeps the line of communication open even after the phone call ends through follow up emails and such. But one poor experience can taint a person’s perspective forever. Hear that, TiVo?

The Boxee Box launched late last week and I finally got our review model on Monday. Hooking up a gadget for the first time is magically and the Boxee Box didn’t disappoint — until it died. Well, until it died, came back to life, and died again. So I sunk down in my chair and called D-Link.

*Bbb-ring* *Bbbb-ring* “Thank you for calling D-Link, how may I help you.”

Me, in my head, “What the hey? This is a live person.” I hung up. I was convinced that I dialed the wrong number. There was no voice prompt, just a live person after a few short rings and I didn’t expect that. I checked the number and called back. Sure enough, I had the right number and this dude asked what I was having trouble with. I told him my Boxee Box was shutting off randomly and he went in full-on troubleshooting mode. Amazing, I thought. The guy that answered the phone is the guy that’s going to help me.

D-Link put the right person with the right credentials and knowledge on the front line. Now a couple times he had to consult other agents concerning my issue, but that’s fine. The Boxee Box is very new and people should ask for help when they don’t know the answer. From start to finish, D-Link did a great job.

Logitech is known for their service after the sale. Sure, sometimes incidents are escalated up to another level of techs which often extends the issue another day or two, but the constant emails from the reps are reassuring. It’s almost like they’re saying your issue isn’t forgotten; that it’s not lost in some queue somewhere. This is what sets them apart. That, and they don’t seem to mind replacing items years after the warranty expires.

Some companies make customer service a priority and so do not. Often the fails are the only ones that are talked about because they’re sensational headlines. There’s a clear trend lacing through all the success stories: the customer service person has the knowledge and ability to actually help the troubled soul. If escalation needs to happen, communication is timely and prompt. All people want is to reach someone that knows what they’re doing and can help. Make that happen, companies. If not, you’ll probably end up in a headline next to the phrase Epic Fail.

Maybe something got lost in translation here, but the British English on this Virgin Media product page for the upcoming TiVo seems to state that their box will be 3D ready. Well, my mid-Michigan English reads that as if TiVo is getting something new. Sigh. Now I’m confused.

Virgin Media,

Our new TiVo® box will be HD and 3D ready, allowing you to get closer to the action

I’m probably reading too much into this, but that statement seems to say that Virgin Media’s TiVo will launch with some new fangled 3D support. Could this mean that Netflix and the other streaming services built-into TiVo are about to get 3D content. Maybe. Or it could just be marketing speak for broadcast 3D like ESPN3D and Discovery 3D, which doesn’t require anything extra to work. So yeah. Sorry for [potentially] wasting your time.