The streak had to end I suppose. After months of nothing but smart moves on the company's part, it announced a new pricing scheme which could move the best PVR service from a necessity to the "not worth that much" category overnight.

TiVo took forever to release its Series 3 receiver, the first TiVo set-top box with HD recording abilities, then priced it at $799. More than one loyal TiVo subscriber I know finally gave up on the company and switched to a cable-company PVR. The price is too high for the Series 3, but I suppose it's an expensive piece of equipment to make, so you can't blame the company too much for that, but jacking up the monthly service fee just does not seem like a good move. I'm not sure what the logic is, perhaps TiVo is under the impression that its software is so far superior to the PVRs being offered by the cable and satellite companies that its customers will be willing to pay much, much more for it.

The future of TiVo does not lie in the success or failure of its set-top boxes, it lies with the company's ability to license its software to the cable and satellite companies who can then integrate a TiVo PVR with their receiver. For the most part, people do not want yet another bill to pay, with the integrated PVR/receiver, it all falls on the same bill, and there is a steep discount for the service (I pay an additional $5.99 per month on my DirecTV bill for TiVo service, the new price for TiVo service with a set-top box is $19.99 per month if you sign a 1-year contract). This new pricing scheme seems to serve two purposes, a slap in the face for the loyal few customers who use the set-top boxes and another reason for prospective customers to choose another service. — Brian Ward

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