Comments on: Philips device could force TV viewers to watch ads

So long, TiVo? Invention would prevent channel switching during commercials or fast-forwarding past ads on a DVR.

[fiadamom]

Maybe they should improve advertising...

You don't usually see folks forwarding through commercials during the superbowl, do you? Why not? Because they make more of an effort to grab our interest. Maybe advertisers should put out a better product, then we'd be more likely to watch their ads. Instead they're trying to ram their crap down our throats and tell us we should like it.
Honey still catches more flies than vinegar folks!

[HC6700]

I agree with Sunntosheley

If the cable companies want to play this game, then let's hit them where it hurts, in the pocketbook. We can return our Tivos (which will cause a significant revenue loss) and go to DVRs and VCRS. The greed of corporate America is repulsive.

[HC6700]

I agree with Sunntosheley

If the cable companies want to play this game, then let's hit them where it hurts, in the pocketbook. We can return our Tivos (which will cause a significant revenue loss) and go to DVRs and VCRS. The greed of corporate America never ceases to amaze and repulse me.

[HC6700]

I agree with Sunntosheley

If the cable companies want to play this game, then let's hit them where it hurts, in the pocketbook. We can return our Tivos (which will cause a significant revenue loss) and go to DVRs and VCRS. The greed and lack of ethics of corporate America never ceases to amaze and repulse me. When is their profit enough. Do they have any sense of what's right or wrong.

[HC6700]

I agree with Sunntosheley

If the cable companies want to play this game, then let's hit them where it hurts, in the pocketbook. We can return our Tivos (which will cause a significant revenue loss) and go to DVRs and VCRS. The greed and lack of ethics of corporate America never ceases to amaze and repulse me. Is their ever enough profit will be enough? Do they have any sense of what's right or wrong.

[HC6700]

I agree with Sunntosheley

If the cable companies want to play this game, then let's hit them where it hurts, in the pocketbook. We can return our Tivos (which will cause a significant revenue loss) and go to DVRs and VCRS. The greed and lack of ethics of corporate America never ceases to amaze and repulse me. Will they ever make enough profit that will be enough? Do they have any sense of what's right or wrong.

[HC6700]

I agree with Sunntosheley

If the cable companies want to play this game, then let's hit them where it hurts, in the pocketbook. We can return our Tivos (which will cause a significant revenue loss) and go to DVRs and VCRS. The greed and lack of ethics of corporate America never ceases to amaze and repulse me. Will they ever make enough profit to satiate their greed? Further, do they have a concience. Do they have any sense of what's right or wrong.

[lstockett]

Never buying from Philips again

I can hardly wait to go out and not buy anything from Philips again. Ever.

[ordaj]

The old fashioned way

Commercials are for:

-bathroom breaks
-snack runs
-surfing the net
-checking on stuff around the house
-etc

[aabcdefghij987654321]

Another patent can fix that

If you leave the room then I'll just patent a device that ensures that commercials are played at a volume level twice that of the shows it's embedded in. Oh wait, I guess they're doing that already but I'd bet the patent office would still grant it.

[holycow]

Boycott Phillips

I think its important for consumers to band together globally and
boycott companies that patent or invent such technologies.
Consumers need to send a strong signal that these types of things
will not be tolerated.

[hansong]

Boycott advertisers, not Phillips

Phillips is just making nice to broadcasters and marketers.

Boycotting the advertisments will make Phillips' tool not only expensive for them, but unusable:

Turn off the TV when commercials start.

Let's see what "tool" they will have to stop us doing that.

[trickdaddy24]

Is this guy serious?

Is this guy serious? Phillips chooses to develop a product that will force me to watch commercials or pay up. I'm sure this will blow up in there faces. The advertiser could spend millions of dollar to try to get me to buy but I dont expect JVC, Sony, or even Pioneer to assist in that. My view of Phillips is forever changed and no silly disclaimer will change that.END

[maxwis]

Philips Milk Of Amnesia

I guess Philips forgot how pissed off consumers were when Sony launched their new and improved content management rootkit. Keep it up Philips. Yo'll just drive consumers to your competitors.

[bommai]

I should invent a device to pause the human brain

If the DVR cannot be fast forwarded, may I should invent a device
to pause the human brain during commercials so that we will never
know that they aired ;-)

[heystoopid]

Cruel and unusual punishment!

Must be uncontsitutional, for two reasons, selling a locked audio visual multi channel device, breaks the fair use principal under common law, further such a system would represent a cruel and unusual punishment as well!

Oh well, it does show what the control freak moguls in the audio visual industry, have in store for us mere mortals in the future, where ownership and fair use rights no longer exists.

The only small problem with this form of censorship, is the on/off button on the wall, your friendly neighborhood library, with real books, and the future computer controlled home media center, with it's attendant library!

It would appear control freaks,by selling these dumb devices, are now rapidly de-evolving with time, back to age origin in the slime, and thus do not fit the "intelligent design criteria!" so popular with unintelligentsia of creationists, from the bible belt these days!

Sadly it seems, stupidity rules in this new century!

[0wnz]

The future has been here for years

For example, does it seem fair that I have to buy the same cd twice to get it to play on both my MP3 player and my car stereo. The RIAA has effectively undone the internet revolution and rolled the clocks back to the early 1990's. Looks like tv execs want a bigger slice of the pie, just like the music execs; it was inevitable.

[huddie klein]

Choice???

"The invention gives viewers a choice to watch an entire movie with or without ads." Yeah, right, like I did not have that choice already. Like I can't watch ads when I want to.

Seems to me they "give" us a choice we
a) had already
b) don't want in the first place

They ought to be punished for this kind of dishonest misleading information! Shoot the inventor!

[markdoiron]

Much Ado About Nothing

This is really much ado about nothing. After all, even a technology idiot isn't going to run right out and buy one of these things!

mark d.

[little.willie]

Not "buy", but forced to "rent"

I believe they're patenting the technology, not necessarily a self-contained box. The goal being to license the technology to cable and satellite companies, who in turn will include the technology in their mandatory set-top boxes.

Wonder what they will do about the 10-15% of households that don't subscribe to any kind of television service and instead opt for just over-the-air programming. Are content owners going to start requiring local broadcasters to scramble the signal so that only folks with set-top boxes can see it?

[GEBERWEIN]

Wanna bet?

Believe me there will be someone that will. But, I'd also bet there would be only one ever created. Once the people found out about it sales would drop so radically that the great sucking sound would be their stock imploding. We look at records for the fastest climb - how about a new one for the only thing to ever exceed terminal velocity.

[TylerHudg]

Boycott Philips

Boycott Philips - if they come out with this

[thedreaming]

I hate ads but...

I hate ads. They are everywhere. When listening to the radio, watching tv, surfing the net, even when I watch a dvd or even go out and see a movie. Now some vidiot with nothing better to do makes a device that will force me to watch the ad or pay a fee? It's my tv, I choose what I want to watch or not and forcing me to watch a comercial won't make me buy their crappy product. If the commercial doesn't hold my attention, why would I even consider buying their product?

I see myself watching alot more iptv or reading more books.

[chrisclickbernard]

Fine-I'm going all internet

I believe if this is tried people will say fine...I'm going to look on the web for it (maybe mobile). Thoughts?

[chrisclickbernard]

Fine-I'm going all internet

I believe if this is tried people will say fine...I'm going to look on the web for it (maybe mobile). Thoughts?