Charter Communications (Nasdaq: CHTR), most recently reported to be slowing down its TV Everywhere deployments, is stepping into the converged Internet and TV space via TiVo (Nasdaq: TIVO) boxes that will be able to tap YouTube and other Web-based applications such as FaceBook and Twitter on the TV.
The initial phase of the partnership will use TiVo's HD user interface and Premiere set-top box along with multi-room and non-DVR platforms, Charter said in a news release. Beyond that, the two will explore next generation platforms, devices, features and third party applications as a path to "making it simple for customers to quickly find the content they're looking for as well as greatly expand their entertainment choices," Mike Lovett, Charter president-CEO said in the news release.
Charter joins a list of cable companies that includes Suddenlink, Cox Communications and RCN that have cut similar deals with TiVo to provide what TiVo President-CEO Tom Rogers called "a fully integrated user experience in building a video platform that truly unifies all available content in a world of rapidly expanding choices for the consumer." The Charter news release did not address problems that Suddenlink reported including the fact that programming rights holders are using licensing clauses to prohibit subscription-based streaming content from being available alongside cable-delivered VoD offerings.
For more:
- see this news release
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