Mon, January 17, 2005
Re: Its time to Rethink TV—11:25 PM
DirecTV president and CEO Mitch Stern (or, lackeys acting on his behalf) sent out a jolly e-mail message to me and other DirecTV subscribers, detailing their exciting new plans for 2005. Among them was the new DirecTV DVR without TiVo that we've been hearing so much about in the press. I took the opportunity to reply, with my objection to the TiVo-killer concept that the media has been forecasting. (In the interest of politeness, I didn't take Mitch to task for his misuse of "Its.")
For those of you DirecTV subscribers (and I know at least three of you!) get motivated and send something similar via the feedback page at DirecTV's website.
Dear Mitch,
Thank you for your e-mail message about DirecTV's big plans for 2005. I'm excited to be and remain a loyal DirecTV customer. One item on your list of upcoming improvements troubles me, though: the new DVR. I've been a loyal subscriber for over three years and I'm personally responsible for converting three new households to your service with my glowing recommendations. But I joined up with DirecTV because of TiVo, and not the other way around. We've been hearing a lot in the press about DirecTV's plans to "go it alone" with its DVR service and "leave TiVo behind." While technologically I agree that it's exciting and profitable for DirecTV to pursue new advancements in DVR functionality, I would sincerely hope that from a marketing and customer service standpoint, DirecTV will continue to acknowledge its long-standing and successful relationship with TiVo and TiVo's loyal (some say, fanatic) subscriber base. Please, let's prove the hysterical media prognosticators wrong: don't cut TiVo out of the loop when you can successfully coexist. And please don't decrement functionality for "DirecTiVo" owners as you move forward with other offerings. As your subscribers, we count on you to provide the best television experience available. Your pricing, your service, and the choices you provide to your customers all contribute to that excellence - and I sincerely hope that you will continue to excel in each of these areas. Thanks for your attention and thanks for the astounding service you provide - I look forward to an exciting 2005!
Yours,
Jameson
"Holly" — Tue, 1/18/05 2:29pm
I'm not even a DirecTV customer right now, but I was one once and I'll probably be one again, so I did my part and left them a dire message explaining that if they ditch TiVo I won't want to sign up with them ever again. Hopefully I phrased it a little more eloquently than that, but you get the idea.
My sisters and I just got Mom TiVo for Christmas. She's thrilled. I have also recently converted my uncle. He's thrilled. How can people (companies) not treat this like the amazing product it is???? I ask you.
Anonymous Coward — Tue, 1/18/05 5:25pm
i want it and if it is not there, then what is there?
"Holly" — Tue, 1/18/05 6:26pm
I like the Zen nature of the previous comment.
"Holly" — Tue, 1/18/05 6:27pm
If a TiVo TiVos a show while you are on vacation, does it make a sound?
What is the sound of one TiVo TiVoing?
The TiVo that can be TiVo'ed is not the eternal TiVo.
"Ike" — Wed, 3/16/05 7:48pm
I think it's ironic that DirecTV would encourage millions of customers to "Rethink TV" during the same month subscribers got a notice of a rate increase.
I'm rethinking my way over to a cable/broadband package deal.
Bee Boy — Wed, 3/16/05 9:55pm
Urg. DirecTV has certainly made some dodgy decisions (splitting with TiVo is quite a misstep – who knows, maybe the Comcast announcement will have them reconsidering) but you couldn't pay me enough to go back to cable. What's the rate hike? Three or four dollars, I think? I wasn't thrilled to hear of it, but it's a small price to pay for unparalleled picture and audio quality, plus the genuine glee of the DirecTiVo experience.
And I have to say, as hokey as the "rethink TV" slogan may be, I'm loving the commercials. The "lifetime of TV" one during the Super Bowl was cool (although, I suppose there's a downer couch potato message there), as was the one with the TVs wandering around. And the new one – with the kids on the beach flying satellites like giant kites? That's just frickin' awesome!