A feature article in The Wall Street Journal suggests that the set-top box market is undergoing a market shift as new Internet video-based innovations like AppleTV and AT&T's Homezone STB supplier 2Wire are breaking the old rules. The WSJ gives DVR startups TiVo and Replay TV credit for sparking the game changing interactivity, but because of their lack of deals with big carriers, TiVo is treading and Replay is bankrupt. In-Stat analyst Mike Paxton noted: "In this business, if you want to play, you need to have some sort of relationship with one of the big operators. It's tough being a stand-alone player." That was certainly the mantra up until this point, but the new standalones from Apple and Cisco's Linksys division (soon) as well as much hyped services like Joost will change that. Also, regulation could open up the STB as cable card requirements slowly come to fruition.
For more on the trend of open STBs:
- see this article from NewTeeVee
ALSO: A new study that looked at what programs people record on DVRs found that people are less likely to record "timely" programs on their DVRs, preferring to watch them live. So, news and sports--but also reality TV programming.