Cable TV’s leading operating system, Cablevision Systems, is going to be offering a new system in 2009. The new system will allow programs to be recorded with out using a DVR. Instead, it will only take programming a program to be recorded by a digital set-top box and the shows will then be stored at the server for you instead of the DVR in your home. This is going to save about $700 million dollars for the company and other cable companies will be offering this technology in a few years.
This new network DVR technology is not without it’s own legal problems though. There is still a question of copyright-infringement that has to be worked out with movie and TV companies. Time Warner is thinking of a federal appeal after recently losing its two-year battle with Cablevision over its new network DVR system.
Cablevision did win its first battle so they do have plans to put it into operations in early 2009. The new system operates just like a home DVR and those using it will need to start recording the shows they want to watch later. Each user will be given an initial 160 gigabytes of storage where they will be able to store their programs at the server for later viewing. Cablevision’s fee for this is about the same as it is for the home DVR.
Cablevisions new technology will allow the cable user to be able to open up a display on their television where they will be able to pick the program they want to record, simply by using their remote. They will be able to store the programs they have recorded at the server for an unlimited length of time. Cablevision will record over the oldest stored programs once the storage limit has been reached. The old DVR boxes that are already being used will simply stay put till they are phased out.
Sep
23