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Posted
Feb 04 2009, 11:24 AM
by
Minyanville
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
"Saturday Night Live" goes commercial? Horrors!
What looked like a "MacGruber" sketch appeared during the Super Bowl, but it was instead a clever ad for Pepsi (PEP). It also indirectly plugged NBC's (GE) popular comedy show by using the familiar character created by cast member Will Forte -- a twofer.
The tactic is part of an ongoing effort to make ads that viewers won't ignore or use their TiVo to skip.
Product placement in movies and TV shows is a familiar part of the plan to reach prospective customers who have grown weary of standard pitches. Using an "SNL" sketch as the jumping-off point for an advertisement is a deft variation on NASCAR's decision to plaster sponsor logos on its cars and drivers, or movie stars wearing the latest designer dress or watch to some grand shindig.
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Posted
Sep 03 2008, 10:41 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
TiVo has been racking up some big-name partnerships lately, and today's announcement with DirecTV is icing on the cake. TiVo is creating a new high-definition DVR for DirecTV customers, and plans to launch it in the second half of next year.
DirecTV will still have its own line of set-top boxes. But the company will market and sell the new DVR to customers who want TiVo service as well. This has got to be particularly gratifying for TiVo because the two companies went through a public breakup that DirecTV customers still cry over
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Posted
Jul 22 2008, 10:06 AM
by
Minyanville
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
The fast-talking TV pitchman may be a candidate for the wax museum if a joint venture by TiVo and Amazon.com takes off.
The dream: turn TVs into a remote control order-taking device that allows viewers to buy advertised products, including books discussed on talk shows and even product placements in sitcoms or dramatic shows.
Today, TiVo will introduce a “product purchase” button on its onscreen menus: Just a few clicks will allow viewers to order items from Amazon.
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Posted
Jul 22 2008, 09:44 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Occasionally, when I watch television using my TiVo video recorder, a small ad will pop up encouraging me to press a button on my remote to get more information about a product. I never do. I'm there to watch a program, not to get sidetracked by news about the latest Audi. TiVo seems to like these subtle advertising nudges, however, and has partnered with Amazon to show viewers links to buy CDs, books and other products that are being promoted on shows. The links will pop up during commercials and even during live shows. If an author is talking up his latest book on "Oprah," for example, you'll see an on-screen link offering you the chance to buy the book from Amazon. TiVo shares are unchanged today at $7.54, and Amazon shares are down about 2% to $67.04.
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Posted
Jun 02 2008, 12:04 PM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Dish Network is heading toward two options: shut down DVR service for its customers or license technology from TiVo. Neither one is particularly palatable, so the company filed a lawsuit against TiVo Friday to buy some time. Today, TiVo shares are down 9% to $7.66 as investors freak out about the litigation. Dish shares are pretty much unchanged. This is a huge deal to Dish because two years ago, the courts told it to stop selling DVRs to customers. (This was after a jury found that Dish's sister company, EchoStar, infringed on TiVo's DVR software). Luckily, Dish got the courts to place that injunction on hold as long as the appeals process was taking place. But the courts refused to hear an appeal earlier this year.
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Posted
May 28 2008, 09:53 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Some headlines that caught my eye today: Who has the worst customer service? MSN Money went snooping, and Time Warner's AOL topped the list. I agree, having seen AOL's horrible service firsthand. Short version of a long story: A family member with Alzheimer's could no longer speak -- let alone remember his AOL password -- and AOL wouldn't let his wife discontinue the service because she wasn't the primary account holder. His wife had to pay for years, and threaten legal action, before AOL canceled the account. Thanks, AOL. Delaware has the best broadband. A new report says Delaware tops the country when it comes to the number of Internet connections using "high broadband" -- meaning speeds exceeding 5 Mbps. About 60% of Delaware's Internet connections fall into this category. Rhode Island and New York round out the top three. I was surprised to see Nevada and Oklahoma next on the list, given that vast rural areas aren't the best environment for fast broadband.
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Posted
Apr 10 2008, 12:36 PM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Blockbuster is feeling the love again in its love-hate relationship with the Internet, and this time I think the company is serious. The Hollywood Reporter says Blockbuster is making a set-top box for streaming movies to TVs, and could announce the service this month. The device would be tied to Movielink, the online movie service for PCs that Blockbuster bought last year. It's an ambitious move for a company that has never figured out the Internet. Blockbuster has bumbled around while Netflix, Amazon, Microsoft, TiVo and others found ways to marry video and the Web. Blockbuster went guns blazing after Netflix two years ago, pouring money into its DVD-by-mail service before deciding to pull back and retrench. Now, Blockbuster is making some smarter moves. For one thing, it's actually doing something with Movielink. And by offering a streaming box, it avoids the messy license and DRM issues that come with a downloading service. But Blockbuster faces some real problems, which may be why its stock price only rose less than 2% on the news today.
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Posted
Nov 29 2007, 03:01 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Poor TiVo. The company pioneers the DVR business only to watch the market being taken over by cable and satellite. It's hard to sell your DVR to people when Comcast is practically forcing a DVR set-top box into their hands.
Luckily, TiVo is working out some deals that might keep it in business, and some of them were announced this week.
First, NBC agreed to place TiVo "tags" in its commercials, so that viewers can click the TiVo remote during an ad to get more information about the product. And to counter the legendary TiVo ad-skippers, NBC signed up for a TiVo service that measures audience viewing behavior on a second-by-second basis. Basically, the network is going to test advertising campaigns to see which, if any, can hold on to its audience during commercials. Good luck -- that fast forward button is a very good thing indeed.
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Posted
Nov 14 2007, 03:11 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
 DVDs used to be the profit makers for movie studios, but a new report says DVD sales are tanking this year -- and suggests Hollywood is headed into the red.
DVD sales have fallen for the last three years after soaring by 75% between 1999 and 2004, according to the report, by Global Media Intelligence. In the first half of this year, DVD sales in the U.S. dropped by 12.5%.
I haven't seen enough solid clues about why DVD sales are down. I don't think the next-generation formats, Blu-Ray and HD-DVD, are mainstream enough yet to eat into the DVD market. Maybe more cable and satellite options, such as on-demand programming, are factoring in. DVD player sales are down 15% over the past year, after dropping 24% the year before.
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