Recognizing that its customers want more than single-device connectivity, TiVo (Nasdaq: TIVO) has entered into the whole-home viewing space with the TiVo Mini, a product described in a press release as "an all-purpose companion device that allows TiVo users to access apps and affordably extend the viewing of live TV, recorded and streaming content, as well as on-demand programming, to rooms throughout their homes without an additional TiVo DVR."
"The TiVo Mini answers the demand for a simplified whole-home viewing experience and a more cost-effective solution than putting another DVR or cable set-top box in another room," Jim Denney, general manager and vice president of product marketing for TiVo, said in the press release. "With so many viewing options in a compact form factor, TiVo Mini makes it easier to get more value from your existing home entertainment set up by further enabling you to watch what you want, where you want it."
TiVo emphasized that the Mini is not a DVR. Rather, the press release said, the unit extends the value of the existing TiVo DVR by letting subscribers use one of the four available tuners to control and access content on a TV in another room of the house, including scheduling recordings and searches and starting a show in one room and finishing it in another.
The device is called a Mini because it's just six inches long and over an inch wide. It requires a subscriber to already have a four-tuner TiVo DVR and pay an additional $5.99 for a 12-month subscription on top of a $99.99 upfront payment. Those who want lifetime service can purchase the product for $249.98, TiVo said.
"TiVo Mini's minimalist design streamlines the entertainment center in additional rooms of the home and offers access to integrated apps, including YouTube, Hulu Plus, Pandora, and Spotify, with more apps planned," the company's press release concluded.
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-TiVo issued this press release
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