TiVo'd Off Update
Finally got through to the Rebate Center and resolved the Missing Documentation, and the check has cleared the bank. That is a relief, but has not diminished by dreams of a TiVo quality DVR unfettered by the restrictions imposed by programmers.
I got to thinking about cable-free DVRs, ones that would allow downloads from broadband to be viewed on a regular TV. I know that would never work in the courts, since only cable subscribers have legal access to the content, making anyone who posts such content for distribution a target for litigation and The Stripey Hole.
But what of content not encumbered by such restrictions?
There are almost enough broadband users to make internet-only programming feasible. Keep the commercials, just make them for internet-only companies. Viewing patterns could be tracked far more easily, given that one knows almost exactly how many viewers there are for each episode. One would probably have to charge a nominal subscription fee to start, just to raise enough capital, and that might provide the first bottleneck.
But imagine if the Daily Show could say "cocksucker" and get away without the bleeps. In fact, that may be where the first content appears, regular cable shows unedited, charging nominal fees for the change to hear Jon Stewart say Fucking Dick.
Combine the speed and upload economy of a Bit Torrent with the user viewability of DVR, and won't ever have to endure the anger at our Puritanical Thought Police every time someone has to digitally blur a flipped bird. I like it.
I got to thinking about cable-free DVRs, ones that would allow downloads from broadband to be viewed on a regular TV. I know that would never work in the courts, since only cable subscribers have legal access to the content, making anyone who posts such content for distribution a target for litigation and The Stripey Hole.
But what of content not encumbered by such restrictions?
There are almost enough broadband users to make internet-only programming feasible. Keep the commercials, just make them for internet-only companies. Viewing patterns could be tracked far more easily, given that one knows almost exactly how many viewers there are for each episode. One would probably have to charge a nominal subscription fee to start, just to raise enough capital, and that might provide the first bottleneck.
But imagine if the Daily Show could say "cocksucker" and get away without the bleeps. In fact, that may be where the first content appears, regular cable shows unedited, charging nominal fees for the change to hear Jon Stewart say Fucking Dick.
Combine the speed and upload economy of a Bit Torrent with the user viewability of DVR, and won't ever have to endure the anger at our Puritanical Thought Police every time someone has to digitally blur a flipped bird. I like it.