DIRECTV and Tivo to Launch new HD DVR in 2010

[Tom Robertson]

DIRECTV and TiVo to Launch New HD DIRECTV DVR with TiVo Service
Wednesday September 3, 7:00 am ET

EL SEGUNDO and ALVISO, Calif., Sept. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DIRECTV, Inc. (Nasdaq: DTV - News), the nation's leading satellite television service provider, and TiVo Inc. (Nasdaq: TIVO - News), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVR), announced today that they have extended their current agreement, which includes the development, marketing and distribution of a new HD DIRECTV DVR featuring the TiVo® service, as well as the extension of mutual intellectual property arrangements.

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Under the terms of the non-exclusive arrangement, DIRECTV and TiVo will work together to develop a version of the TiVo® service for DIRECTV's broadband-enabled HD DVR platform. The product will support the latest TiVo and DIRECTV features and services, including TiVo's Universal Swivel Search and TiVo KidZone. TiVo will develop the new HD DVR for an expected launch in the second half of 2009.

DIRECTV will continue to develop and offer its own portfolio of industry leading set top boxes as primary offerings to both new and existing customers. This new TiVo box will be offered as an alternative choice to those DIRECTV customers who would like to add TiVo to a full line up of DIRECTV services.

"We have had a very successful history with DIRECTV. Together we brought the TiVo experience to millions of DIRECTV customers and now we look forward to launching a next generation product that uses TiVo's latest features to truly showcase DIRECTV's broad selection of high-definition programming -- all stitched together with the elegance of TiVo's renowned user experience," said Tom Rogers, TiVo's CEO and president. "This agreement demonstrates our continued embrace of mass distribution opportunities in cooperation with major multichannel operators who recognize the value of giving their customers a choice of compelling user experiences."

Like prior products developed by TiVo and DIRECTV, the new HD offering will be marketed and sold by DIRECTV nationally to its entire customer base as part of its growing portfolio of brand name video offerings. Specific consumer pricing and packaging will be announced in conjunction with DIRECTV's launch of the product.

"As the industry's content and technology leader, DIRECTV has a long-standing reputation for developing innovative, advanced products and services, including our highly successful series of DVRs and HD DVRs," said Chase Carey, president and CEO, DIRECTV, Inc. "We will continue to work with TiVo and make this new product available to all new and existing DIRECTV customers who may want to add TiVo on top of our industry leading experience."

DIRECTV and TiVo began their relationship in 2000 with the launch of the first DIRECTV DVR with TiVo service. In April 2006, the companies announced an extension of their commercial and advertising relationship and those commercial and advertising capabilities are further extended, and now include the new HD platform. DIRECTV and TiVo also recently deployed a software update to existing DIRECTV with TiVo boxes, which enables new features like DIRECTV's Remote Booking.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

About DIRECTV, Inc.

DIRECTV, Inc. (NASDAQ: DTV - News), the nation's leading satellite television service provider, presents the finest television experience available to more than 17.1 million customers in the United States and is leading the HD revolution with more than 130 HD channels -- more quality HD channels than any other television provider. Each day, DIRECTV subscribers enjoy access to over 265 channels of 100% digital picture and sound, exclusive programming, industry-leading customer satisfaction (which has surpassed all national cable companies for eight years running) and superior technologies that include advanced DVR and HD-DVR services and the most state-of-the-art interactive sports packages available anywhere. For the most up-to-date information on DIRECTV, please visit directv.com.

About TiVo Inc

Founded in 1997, TiVo (NASDAQ: TIVO - News) pioneered a brand new category of products with the development of the first commercially available digital video recorder (DVR). Sold through leading consumer electronic retailers, TiVo has developed a brand which resonates boldly with consumers as providing a superior television experience. Through agreements with leading satellite and cable providers, TiVo also integrates its DVR service features into the set-top boxes of mass distributors. TiVo's DVR functionality and ease of use, with such features as Season Pass® recordings, WishList® searches, and TiVo KidZone, have elevated its popularity among consumers and have created a whole new way for viewers to watch television. With a continued investment in its patented technologies, TiVo is revolutionizing the way consumers watch and access home entertainment. Rapidly becoming the focal point of the digital living room, TiVo's DVR is at the center of experiencing new forms of content on the TV, such as broadband delivered video, music and photos. With innovative features such as TiVoToGo(TM) and online scheduling, TiVo is expanding the notion of consumers experiencing "TiVo, TV your way.®" The TiVo® service is also at the forefront of providing innovative marketing solutions for the television industry, including the Stop||Watch(TM) commercial and program rankings service, a unique platform for advertisers and media companies. The Company is based in Alviso, California.

TiVo, the TiVo logo, Season Pass, WishList, Swivel, Stop||Watch, TiVoToGo, and 'TiVo, TV your way.' are trademarks or registered trademarks of TiVo Inc. or its subsidiaries worldwide. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

This release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements relate to, among other things, the timing and nature of future development and distribution of DIRECTV DVRs with TiVo service, the future availability of interactive advertising capabilities and future negotiations between TiVo and DIRECTV on other product initiatives. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as, "believe," "expect," "may," "will," "intend," "estimate," "continue," or similar expressions or the negative of those terms or expressions. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to vary materially from those expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially include delays in development, competitive service offerings and lack of market acceptance, as well as the other potential factors described under "Risk Factors" in DIRECTV's public reports and TiVo's public reports, including each company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent current and quarterly reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Each of DIRECTV and TiVo cautions you not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which reflect an analysis only and speak only as of the date hereof. Each of DIRECTV and TiVo disclaim any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

[Tom Robertson]

And a Summary of the TiVo SEC filing: http://biz.yahoo.com/e/080903/tivo8-k.html

Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement


ITEM 1.01. Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

On September 2, 2008, we entered into a new Amended & Restated Development Agreement with DIRECTV, Inc., which amends and restates, our prior Development Agreement with DIRECTV. The new agreement extends the expiration date of our agreement with DIRECTV from February 15, 2010 to February 15, 2015, with DIRECTV having the right to extend further until February 15, 2018, subject to limited exceptions. Under the terms of our non-exclusive agreement, TiVo will develop a new version of the TiVo® service for DIRECTV's broadband-enabled high definition DVR platform. As part of this new agreement, DIRECTV will pay a substantially higher monthly fee for households using the new high definition DIRECTV DVRs with TiVo than the fees for previously deployed DIRECTV DVRs with TiVo service. DIRECTV will continue to pay the current monthly fee for all households using only the previously deployed DIRECTV DVRs with TiVo service. The fees paid by DIRECTV are subject to monthly minimum payments that escalate during the term of the agreement starting in 2010 and those minimum payments are substantially higher than in the prior agreement. On an annual basis, we will continue to defer a portion of these fees as a non-refundable credit to fund mutually agreed development, with excess development work to be funded up-front by DIRECTV subject to limited future fee credits.

DIRECTV is also obligated to annual marketing commitments, including significant cross-channel promotion of the high definition DIRECTV DVR with TiVo service to be developed by TiVo. Further, the new agreement extends each party's covenant not to assert its patents against the other party with respect to each company's products and services deployed prior to the expiration of the agreement, subject to limited exceptions. In addition, going forward, DIRECTV is entitled to most favored customer terms as compared with other multi-channel video distributors in the United States to whom TiVo grants a license to distribute certain TiVo technology in the future. DIRECTV has the right to terminate the agreement in the event we are the subject of certain change of control transactions involving certain companies. We also have the right to terminate the agreement, including the patent covenant, if we are unable to deliver the product within a specified time period due to non-TiVo issues.

In addition, on September 2, 2008, we entered into a new Second Amended & Restated Services Agreement with DIRECTV, Inc., which amends and restates, our prior Amended & Restated Services Agreement with DIRECTV. Under this new agreement, we continue to have the right to sell advertising and audience research and measurement products in connection with DIRECTV DVRs with TiVo service deployed prior to the effective date of this new agreement, and such rights will extend to new high definition DIRECTV DVRs with TiVo service to be developed by TiVo.

The foregoing description of our new Amended & Restated Development Agreement with DIRECTV, Inc. and our new Second Amended & Restated Services Agreement with DIRECTV, Inc. is qualified in its entirety by reference to the provisions of those agreements that will be filed as exhibits with the Company's Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended October 31, 2008.

[raoul5788]

Originally Posted by Tom Robertson

DIRECTV and TiVo to Launch New HD DIRECTV DVR with TiVo Service
Wednesday September 3, 7:00 am ET

EL SEGUNDO and ALVISO, Calif., Sept. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DIRECTV, Inc. (Nasdaq: DTV - News), the nation's leading satellite television service provider, and TiVo Inc. (Nasdaq: TIVO - News), the creator of and a leader in television services for digital video recorders (DVR), announced today that they have extended their current agreement, which includes the development, marketing and distribution of a new HD DIRECTV DVR featuring the TiVo® service, as well as the extension of mutual intellectual property arrangements.
....(rest of the press announcement removed, it's a long one...)

This is going to make a lot of Tivo owners very happy!

[jcwest]

Now the TIVO freaks will be jumping for joy today.

[elwaylite]

Whoopee. Wheres my new hd

[Steve Robertson]

WOW this is great news

[Incog-Neato]

LOL, so much for all the naysayers.

[paulman182]

Even though I've had great results with my DirecTV designed DVRs, I can see from posts all over the web that this is a HUGE move for DirecTV.

I wonder if they really will continue the HR series after the new TiVo becomes a stable platform. I have my doubts.

[davring]

Will the TIVO fanatics be able to wait an entire year? I can see polls, wish lists and people already lining up to buy. This will be fun to watch

[Tom Robertson]

This has awesome potential for DIRECTV users. DIRECTV will continue to have access to the TiVO portfolio of intellectual property, DIRECTV customers will have access to TiVO based DVRs and services, and we'll likely see even more cooler stuff in both DVR lines because of collaboration. Woohoo!

I'm sure the Shadow will be along soon to bring his signature phrase!

Cheers,
Tom

[Grydlok]

Well we now know where the DLB will come from.

[wilbur_the_goose]

WOW - Just give us DLB!

[wilbur_the_goose]

Originally Posted by wilbur_the_goose

WOW - Just give us DLB!

I'm a big time HR20 fan, but TiVo rocks, and I will definitely switch back.

[newsposter]

i guess this prevents any lawsuits too

So when's the preorder?

[elwaylite]

Only way Ill try it is if it has built in OTA.

[braven]

This is good news. Good news indeed.

[noursegod]

I guess that just goes to show you... Never say never

On another note... I winder if this will be like the comcast deal where the Tivo software can be loaded onto the HR2x series DVRs....

[joshjr]

I wanted a TiVo DVR to begin with. I do happen to like the HR20 I have but would be very interested in getting my hands on a TiVo. The only thing I am wondering will be if the AM21 will work with it or if it will the tuners built into it.

[bgottschalk]

"DIRECTV will continue to develop and offer its own portfolio of industry leading set top boxes as primary offerings to both new and existing customers. This new TiVo box will be offered as an alternative choice to those DIRECTV customers who would like to add TiVo to a full line up of DIRECTV services."

I certainly hope this is true.

I would hate to see the whole CE process and HR series just end and have us just handed a TIVO and told - here's what you get - it is what it is. What does this do to all the development happening on the HR series now and for the next 12 months?

Not sure what to really think of this news.

[photostudent]

Put me on the waiting list!

[davemayo]

I wonder if you will be able to ask Directv specifically to ship you one of these new DTivos, or whether this will be a retail only item.

[elwaylite]

2nd half of 2009 huh, meh. Ill ask again, "wheres my new hd"

[Tom Robertson]

Originally Posted by elwaylite

2nd half of 2009 huh, meh. Ill ask again, "wheres my new hd"

New HD sooner than the TiVO-based DVR...

[markrubi]

If it has DLB's which it should I see myself switching dvr's. If it comes to the current dvr's I have then I will keep them. They will be perfect then in my eyes.

[BlueSnake]

Nothin', but nothin' but good news.

Even the biggest supporters of the HR series will have to admit this is good news. I have been wondering all along that after 2 years how can Directv still be developing this piece of electronics in a world where a 2 year old piece of electronic equipment is usually considered obsolete.