TiVo (Nasdaq: TIVO), which suffered a $20.6 million third quarter loss (compared to $6.4 million a year ago) and predicted things are going to get even worse, could be a harbinger for the multitudes of cable cord cutting purveyors.
TiVo, after all, was the company that made digital video recording both a verb and a noun when it was the first to let consumers pause, rewind and record live television. Then cable, satellite and telco operators built their own versions, included them in the set-top boxes that were provided to consumers--along with extra fees for the service--and TiVo started to wither. The company, which is trying to come back by working with over-the-top providers like Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX), YouTube and Amazon.com, and even has made peace with some cable operators, saw third quarter revenue drop more than $6 million compared to a year earlier.
On the positive side, if there is such a thing with negative numbers, TiVo said it lost 112,000 customers in the quarter; last year it lost 314,000 subs. Its total subscriber figures were down to 2.3 million from last year's 2.7 million total.
Looking ahead, the company said it expected to lose $32 million to $34 million in the fourth quarter.
For more:
- see this story
Related articles:
TiVo bets current pay TV models will withstand OTT incursion
TiVo box for under $100; company sets holiday pricing
Patent office hands TiVo a loss in battle with Dish, EchoStar