TiVo Chief Talks Consumer Choice in MIPCOM Keynote

CANNES: In the Connected Entertainment keynote at MIPCOM today, Tom Rogers, the president and CEO of TiVo, in conversation with World Screen’s group editorial director, Anna Carugati, discussed the importance of allowing consumers to be in full control of their TV experience.

"The best way to describe TiVo is it gives you total control over how you watch television," Rogers said to attendees in the crowded Grand Auditorium at the Palais des Festivals. He went on to introduce a clip reel of references to TiVo in a host of different TV shows, in order to symbolize how the device has become a pop-culture phenomenon.

Discussing the evolution of the company, Rogers noted that today, the TiVo devices not only gives consumers access to traditional, linear TV—it also delivers online content, noting that TiVo DVRs "deliver 5 to 6 million pieces of content you can’t get through cable or satellite."

When asked about Hulu, Rogers said he was keen to provide access to the streaming service via the TiVo DVR: "We hope to make it part of the TiVo experience."

Carugati went on to ask about the rate of growth of DVR penetration, noting that it has slowed recently. "Rates of growth as technology matures are misleading," Rogers stated. "The absolute number continues to grow rapidly." At present, there are 35 million DVR homes in the U.S., on track to reach 50 to 60 million homes in the next few years.

Discussing how the TiVo service is distinctive, Rogers said that the devices "secret sauce" is making "interaction and interactive TV not something that is geeky." The service, he says, is "truly simple" in terms of how consumers interact with it. "One box, one remote, one user interface for everything."

He continued: "The consumer has to be able to feel as if the entire world of choice is available to them…. The consumer doesn’t care if it’s broadcast delivered, broadband delivered, cable delivered." He also noted that TiVo has been referred to as the "Google of TV…we search across all forms of television."

Asked about TiVo’s impact on the ad community, Rogers said the the company was once the "pariahs of the ad world…Once you’ve experienced the ability to watch TV without that kind of [commercial] interruption, it’s very difficult to go back…The tolerance of viewers to watch commercials in middle of programming is disappearing."

The company has demonstrated, however, via its extensive research that there are some ads that consumers will stop for. "There’s a lot of choice over what people will stop and watch. People do make decisions as to what they will and won’t watch….As this experiences becomes broadly penetrated, the industry can respond" with a view to creating healthier business models for everyone. "TV can be more impactful than ever. The standing of TV is increasing relative to other media."