Okay, if you've just joined us, here's my regular predictions here on PVR Wire: PVRs will kill ads and traditional scheduling, and the media center will become the hub of the wireless home. Oh, and most television in future will be delivered over the internet or by IP.
AV Review in the UK has summarised the situation regarding PVRs over on this side of the pond, covering Sky+, TVDrive, Freeview and stand-alone PVRs, but the ultimate conclusion of the item states a point quite clearly, which appears to support my theories:
"It's evolving rapidly into an online, on-demand world where TV programmes don't just come via the airwaves at a set time but along a cable precisely when you want. Digital recorders are getting easier to program but catch-up TV services could bypass the need to plan and record anything. This will have an impact on the economics of TV, as VoD is usually charged per programme like album tracks on iTunes. Research in the US suggests that viewers will even pay slightly more for VoD content if it comes without ads. None of this will replace the thrill of watching a live special event but for everything else, TV timeshifting is poised to become the future."
Couldn't have said it better myself.
1. No mention of hd compatability. With the recent problem of HD READY and HD COMPLIANT What specs to the new PVRs need? Must they have MPEG4 capability and what about the output?
Posted at 5:24AM on Aug 25th 2006 by Robert Catterall