M+E Daily

TiVo is looking to take advantage of the growing market for over-the-air (OTA) digital video recorders (DVRs) with its new Bolt OTA for antenna, a 4K Ultra High Definition (UHD) and High Dynamic Range (HDR) capable set-top box it’s shipping Sept. 28 at $249.99, according to Ted Malone, TiVo VP of consumer products and services.

The company is seeing “a lot of real growth in the OTA market – a lot of growth with cord-cutters” and people looking to get “more value out of their TV service and are concerned with large pay-TV subscriptions for a bunch of channels they don’t watch,” he told the Media & Entertainment Services Alliance (MESA).

“We’ve seen about a 10 percent year-over-year growth in our OTA business, while our cable business has been declining, kind of along with the pay-TV business declining in general,” he said.

Bolt OTA seamlessly combines the features of TiVo’s most powerful DVR with the most popular online streaming services, the company said, noting the device lets users access apps including Amazon Prime Video, Hulu and Netflix, with UHD and HDR streaming capability. The device also works with nearly any HD antenna and TV, enabling consumers to freely watch or record local TV programming, national news, sports and other entertainment in HD using an antenna, but without the cost of renting equipment from a pay-TV provider, TiVo said.

Users can stream and download shows to their mobile devices, watch their favorite content on-the-go or schedule recordings nearly anywhere they go with the free TiVo app or add a TiVo Mini for a multi-room, whole-home TV solution, the company said.

The integrated device, which replaces the TiVo Roamio OTA DVR from 2013, features four tuners and stores up to 150 hours of HD programming, according to the company, adding the device works with TiVo’s voice-controlled VOX Remote.

Using the box’s SkipMode, users can jump over entire commercial breaks on recorded programs with a single button press, it also said.

The antenna is sold separately, and buyers will also have to pay a monthly service charge of $6.99 or annual fee of $69.99.

TiVo isn’t the only company out to tap into the growing number of cord-cutters. One obvious example is Amazon, which recently announced it will ship the similar Fire TV Recast, Malone pointed out.

The Amazon device will ship Nov. 14 in two SKUs: a $229.99, two–tuner model with 500 GB of storage allowing users to record up to two shows at once and holding up to 75 hours of HD programming; and a $279.99, four–tuner model with 1 TB of storage letting users record up to four shows at once and holding up to 150 hours of HD programming, Amazon said Sept. 20. Unlike the TiVo box, there’s no monthly service fee with Amazon’s product. (https://press.aboutamazon.com/news-releases/news-release-details/amazon-introduces-fire-tv-recast-dvr-lets-you-watch-and-record)

One advantage for TiVo is that its name has become synonymous with DVRs. After all, it’s been making DVRs for 19 years, Malone noted.

Additionally, users can use Bolt OTA to stream “raw recordings” in HD to other TVs in one’s house with the TiVo Mini extender, “without needing to compromise on video quality,” he said. In comparison, the tuners on competing devices “are all going to compress the video before sending it to other TVs,” he said, adding the higher quality and “premium pay TV-like experience” provided by Bolt OTA represents a “point of differentiation for us.”

TiVo’s research team estimated that “cord cutter intenders” – consumers thinking about cutting the pay-TV cord for budgetary reasons — represent 25% of the general pay-TV viewing population, the company said in a news release.

Bolt OTA “represents the ideal solution for these customers who are looking to save money but are concerned they may lose important programming or be stuck with complicated app solutions that are hard for everyone in the household to use,” it said, adding: “Cord cutter regretters have already moved to using only internet TV services, including streaming apps, but are now rethinking their decision based on missing programming choices and inferior viewing experiences. Bolt OTA helps these customers regain a premium TV experience without needing to re-subscribe to a pay-TV service that charges them for channels they don’t want, or requires them to rent set-top boxes.”