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  1. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Online DVD renter Netflix Inc. and television recorder maker TiVo Inc. are close to a deal that would allow Netflix subscribers to download movies over the Internet to their TiVo devices, according to the latest issue of Newsweek magazine.


    full story here http://money.cnn.com/2004/09/07/technology/tivo_netflix.reut/index.htm
    drink up....the world's about to end
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    This seems rather pointless to me.

    Why would I spend hours downoading a film when I can drive 5 minutes to the video store and rent the same movie? This would be nice for indie flix. But I'm not going to buy a $200 Tivo box just for that. Besides, with the disc you get all the special features

    Futhermore, I seriously doubt that this would be anywhere near DVD quality.

    The logistics of delivering these movies would be a nightmare for Netflix and Tivo. And I really can't imagine the studios even thinking about allowing this without the ability to encrypt the hell out of the downloads.

    If people want low grade picture and no special features they can order pay-per-view or watch any of the 1000s of movies on cable and satellite each month.

    This seems like a horrible idea.
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  3. sounds like BS news aimed at raising their stock price
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  4. Call me old fashioned, But isnt it better to wait for a few f-a-c-t-s before condemning this ?? maybe its hi-def movies delivered in under 10 minutes, maybe not?
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  5. technically, if you are already with netflix, you would be able to get the movies faster if you download them say, overnight. It would be the same as waiting for them in the mail.
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  6. Member dynamix1's Avatar
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    I am a netflix subscriber and I love the service just the way it is. It sounds like a plan to increase tivo sales.
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    Originally Posted by freestyler
    sounds like BS news aimed at raising their stock price
    Agreed. "Close to a deal" is a meaningless statement. "Close" like in a game of hand grenades ...or "close" like in the next galaxy? :P
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  8. Originally Posted by anubis13
    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Online DVD renter Netflix Inc. and television recorder maker TiVo Inc. are close to a deal that would allow Netflix subscribers to download movies over the Internet to their TiVo devices, according to the latest issue of Newsweek magazine.


    full story here http://money.cnn.com/2004/09/07/technology/tivo_netflix.reut/index.htm
    Sounds like a pps pump. Netflix's stock has taken a dive after being severly hyped for the last year. But, who knows.... this might be the next big thing.
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    Originally Posted by dafoe
    This seems rather pointless to me.

    Why would I spend hours downoading a film when I can drive 5 minutes to the video store and rent the same movie? This would be nice for indie flix. But I'm not going to buy a $200 Tivo box just for that. Besides, with the disc you get all the special features

    Futhermore, I seriously doubt that this would be anywhere near DVD quality.

    The logistics of delivering these movies would be a nightmare for Netflix and Tivo. And I really can't imagine the studios even thinking about allowing this without the ability to encrypt the hell out of the downloads.

    If people want low grade picture and no special features they can order pay-per-view or watch any of the 1000s of movies on cable and satellite each month.

    This seems like a horrible idea.
    No, what is a horrible idea is to stand static when BOTh bricks and morter and disk by mail for rental can't last for too long. unless they look at future models they are going to be dead in ten years give or take a few.

    my first data line for my pc was 50 baud, my first telephone line modem was 300 baud. the original tarrif system for residential pohone line data was based on 1,200 baud (1.2k), because that was faster than anyone could concievably read ascii. 14.4 k was projected to last for many more years than it actually did as both a threshold and typical speed.

    I don't know what the projections are for typically or high end urban data speeds are in ten years, but I will bet the projections are WAY lower than it actually turns out. I will also bet that dowloading 2 hours of programing for a handlehld video display of say 6x4" inches will take a few moments, perhaps even wirelessly

    the ncrease in the amount of video data needed for home applications (say following progression increases from analog tv/ vhs, dvd to high def), is behind the increase in internet transmission speed by several orders of magnitude in the past ten years.

    Then there are the possibilites of selection one can get if not relying on pysical inventory of disks. Bblockbuster and netflix don't carry even 10% of the available material. there is a whale of a lot of material I would not mind renting and watching on my archos that blockbuster and netflix will never carry on physical disks.
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  10. that blockbuster and netflix will never carry on physical disks
    What makes you think they will make it available online if they havent done so already?? I bet if its not on DVD yet then it wont be on D/l? A film needs a lot of TLC b4 release and the final pressing of the disc is the easiest part of all ... see SW, 20-30 years in the making!!
    Money talks.. Art languishes..
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    Originally Posted by RabidDog
    that blockbuster and netflix will never carry on physical disks
    What makes you think they will make it available online if they havent done so already?? I bet if its not on DVD yet then it wont be on D/l? A film needs a lot of TLC b4 release and the final pressing of the disc is the easiest part of all ... see SW, 20-30 years in the making!!
    Money talks.. Art languishes..
    you are counting two costs (dvd authoring and pressing) and missing the first and fourth costs (prodcution of the material as a film in thefirst place and distrubution of DVD's). these costs are massively larger than costs two and three.

    yes the pressing is the easiest part, but the labor costs before pressing, even of junk to criterian quality, is the tiniest fraction of the costs involved after pressing, ie packaging of each individual disk, distribution of physical material, and maintianing in inventory of physical disks at a retail store. as I mentioned the owners have already paid the writers, actors, technictions, location, postproduction, branding, etc.

    Inventory turnover is important in any rental or retail place. if you have a film on the shelf that rents three times per week it literally costs you a fractio nof the film that rents only twice per month, even if you paid the same amount. money spent on inventory always has an opportunity and maintainance cost.

    My point is that a lot of material won't need anyting except basic recording, properly placed in a database, served and tansported over whatever is next after current broadband. (the last two being the variables that will decline in cost/time)

    you can't conceviably inventory physically in a retail store the 90% (my guess is more) of film material that is not on dvd in any given country. Moreover you certainly can't bricks and morter pysically retail/rental linventory the order of magniture larger number of non film titles. Examples would be all the stuff on the discovery channel, PBS, etc.

    to me it is the future. the only drags are pipeline width and DRM
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  12. I was also talking about non-film titles eg television.. you are of course right ........


    ......to some degree but I think preparing for download is a bigger task than you imagine.
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    Originally Posted by RabidDog
    I was also talking about non-film titles eg television.. you are of course right ........
    ......to some degree but I think preparing for download is a bigger task than you imagine.
    my point is it is nowhere near the original production costs which have already been taken.

    On high production costs material, eg a discovery channel documentary, the relative price of preparing for broadband distribution would be exceptionally low.

    on low cost production material, eg the charlie rose show, not much would have to go into it either as technical quality would not be a primary issue.

    friends of mine in Europe are already using TV[over]IP,. the current minimum is 2mps, but I get 1.5 mps on my dsl and expect that 5mps won't be too far away.
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  14. "friends of mine in Europe are already using TV[over]IP" that sounds like Homechoice??
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    Originally Posted by RabidDog
    "friends of mine in Europe are already using TV[over]IP" that sounds like Homechoice??
    I belweive there are several different vendors in the half dozen countries where 2mbit onsumer serice is available.
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  16. Depending on how this is done it could kill Rental stores. If they are able to deliver this with acceptable down load times etc... this could be the start of the end of rental stores.

    If I could just download a rental without returning and keep it for X number of days without late fees.....I will be the first to buy one.
    "But that's just my opinion....I could be wrong".

    - Dennis Miller
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  17. people are still renting and buying tapes .. so .. long time yet..
    Corned beef is now made to a higher standard than at any time in history.
    The electronic components of the power part adopted a lot of Rubycons.
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