TiVo : Virgin Media testing a cloud-based recording system

[Gavin-D]

An article in yesterday's telegraph says that BSkyB is planing major overhaul of set-top box to meet Apple threat with a view to adding a cloud based recording system the telegraph also reports that Virgin Media is testing a cloud-based recording system along the lines of Project Ethan with its set-top box provider TiVo.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/n...le-threat.html

[alwaysabear]

Originally Posted by Gavin-D

An article in yesterday's telegraph says that BSkyB is planing major overhaul of set-top box to meet Apple threat with a view to adding a cloud based recording system the telegraph also reports that Virgin Media is testing a cloud-based recording system along the lines of Project Ethan with its set-top box provider TiVo.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/n...le-threat.html

Its undoubtedly the future.

[BenMcr]

It's likely a variation on this http://investor.tivo.com/phoenix.zht...cle&ID=1888472

TiVo Reveals Plans to Bring TiVo(R) Roamio(TM) DVR Experience to the Cloud With Network Recordings Seamlessly Integrated, Easily Searchable and Available Anywhere, Anytime

[johnathome]

Originally Posted by BenMcr

It's likely a variation on this http://investor.tivo.com/phoenix.zht...cle&ID=1888472

That sounds interesting but i wonder what limitations it will have?

For instance will i be able to record any of my channels and stream them to my phone/tablet, even ones that i wouldn't normally be allowed to through the TVAnywhere app?

Would it really be anywhere/anytime? Would i be able to stream them over 3G/4G instead of just over wifi?

I hope they hurry up with this and i'll keep a beady eye on developments

[muppetman11]

On paper its what we all want my only reservation with cloud recordings is expiry times , many people with 1TB and 2TB PVR's currently like to record and stack series up to watch at leisure.

Cloud recordings just become like On Demand so it will be interesting to see how long you can keep them in the cloud.

[tweetiepooh]

Or how do you watch them if the cloud is out? At the moment I can watch recording if the "link" is down.

And how well does fast forward/reverse work? Local stuff it works very well, less controllable on streamed content. e.g. most program titles are approx 30 sec or one press of skip (3 on Star Trek), ad's often around 5 mins so can rack up "skips" but press play if shorter.

And echo expiry times. We have some recordings back over a year for programmes featuring family or of specific interest.

[muppetman11]

Exactly you only have to look at the disaster Sky has had over the last month or so with Now TV and Sky Go services down , yesterday's issue was so called after planned maintenance the day before as well , totally unacceptable from a pay service although to be fair they are issuing refunds.

[devilincarnate]

What do you do when it's a bright sunny day without a cloud in the sky

[alwaysabear]

Originally Posted by devilincarnate

What do you do when it's a bright sunny day without a cloud in the sky

Go out and enjoy the weather.

[Skie]

The perverse thing is due to overzealous rights holders what would be a rather good service capable of increasing viewership will likely be knobbled into something that has to do a lot of silly things just to appease Hollywood and their TV arms.

The sensible thing would be to just record everything that gets broadcast and then dish that up as video on demand whenever someone sets a recording. Seamless and cost effective. Anything past a day old that nobody has flagged to record is purged (though you could keep them for 7 to act as a universal catch-up service).

But the reality will probably be that each show is recorded and stored per customer who wanted it recording. There might even be channel or show based restrictions if a certain company refuses to allow cloud based storage of their show. Look at how aero in the US have had to come up with a way to remain legal.

It will be interesting to see if they can work around the idiocy of the media old guard. If not, piracy will continue to be the most convenient method to view shows.

[Stuart]

While I can see the advantage of this technology for Virgin. After all, the boxes for this will not require a hard drive, so it reduces their costs for both maintenance and installation. For the consumer, I fail to see what advantage it provides over current technology.

Yes, you can watch it on any device, but the current technology is capable of doing that. So far any attempts to do that in this country have been hampered by rights holders, and I do not see that changing unless Liberty are willing to start competing with Sky on content, and fighting to have streaming to other devices included in their agreements with providers.

There is also the advantage that you can build the software into other devices, such as smart TVs, but, again, the technology to do that is already here, and Virgin have not used it.

In the meantime, they can expire programmes (which is something I do not want to see) and there is a lot more that can go wrong with the system.

[spiderplant]

Originally Posted by Stuart

While I can see the advantage of this technology for Virgin. After all, the boxes for this will not require a hard drive, so it reduces their costs for both maintenance and installation. For the consumer, I fail to see what advantage it provides over current technology.

Potentially unlimited recording space.

Potentially unlimited number of simultaneous recordings.

You don't lose recordings if the box goes faulty, or you upgrade to a newer box.

Lower power consumption in the home. Could even record with the box completely powered off.

No hard drive noise.

Originally Posted by spiderplant

Potentially unlimited recording space.

Potentially unlimited number of simultaneous recordings.

You don't lose recordings if the box goes faulty, or you upgrade to a newer box.

Lower power consumption in the home. Could even record with the box completely powered off.

No hard drive noise.

No access if network down / issues....

Not many homes have resilient links (yes, Iggy, the exception that proves the rule.... )

[borrissey]

Cloud based recording sounds good to up recording capacity but keep a hard drive in the TiVo also, good for backing up your TiVo as well.