Mid-Tiers Increasingly Turning to TiVo

TiVO (NASDAQ:TIVO) began its story by providing DVRs directly to consumers, somewhat in competition with MSOs. But the company has enhanced its technology and built out its services to become a provider of not only whole-home DVR, but also multiscreen services to cable operators.Ten mid-tier operators already have signed on with TiVO for varying levels of service. Blue Ridge Communications is the most recent addition, contracting to utilize the TiVO platform to power a multiscreen strategy."By leveraging a common code and cloud infrastructure, a mid-sized operator like Blue Ridge can deliver advanced solutions - the kinds of things Comcast is spending hundreds of millions to develop," said Tom Elam, VP and General Manager of TiVO's U.S. service provider business. "A smaller operator can (take advantage of) TiVO's R&D. We (spread) across multiple operators so the return on investment becomes attractive to us."Integration with TiVO begins with the operator's linear catalog and billing and provisioning systems. "When an operator installs a DVR with a TiVO interface, it will be activated by their installers," Elam said. "They need to be able to activate the TiVO service to get the advanced (offerings)."Next come the interactive services, the VOD catalog, the CallerID, any type of marketing promotions that the operator wants to be included in the new user interface. The fact that TiVO uses IP technology for this integration means that the consumer will have the same experience on their iPad or mobile device as they would on their TV set."We are focused on a hybrid experience," Elam said, noting that overall the integration is straightforward and takes about three months from start to launch.The operator itself does not have to have transitioned to IP in any way; however, if they have an IP back office, the system becomes "more elegant," Elam said. For example, content does not have to be modified to go through third-party authentication before distribution to the various clients.As for consumer hardware, so far TiVO and its partner operators have been deploying on new set-top boxes, both TiVO branded and third-party. The company recently reached an agreement, for example, to deliver its interface through Pace (LSE:PIC) products. "We are keen to do more support of third-party hardware. It allows operators to choose best-of-breed hardware outside of the best-of-breed guide," Elam said.While currently the service is not being deployed to existing set-top boxes, TiVO is investigating the possibility, Elam added.Monta Monaco Hernon is a free-lance writer. She can be reached at [email protected].