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.

[Jahntassa]

It's just a patent

It's just a patent people. Basically it's saying that Philips thought of it, figured out how to do it, and Voila! If anyone else tries to make a system that does it, they'll have to pay Philips royalties! I'm not a patent expert or anything, but just because someone holds a patent doesn't mean they need to go into mass production.

Plus the article said that the patent is for a technology that gets worked into set-top boxes. It's like a V-chip. The manufacturer of your DVR or cable/satellite box would need to get the technology and implement it. THEN, the advertisers would have to get on-board to enable it. PLUS, the networks themselves might not let the advertisers do it!

I think that if this technology is actually put out in the field (which I doubt), very few advertisers would choose to use it. Why? Well the points of boycotting products and angry consumers have already come up. Unless the entire industry says 'let's stick it to 'em!' and runs this feature on ALL commercials, and ALL televisions are somehow infused with this technology, there's no way an advertiser would try to use this technology for any length of time.

That is, if any of the set-top or DVR manufacturers actually agree to install this technology in their devices anyway. It's just a patent people, no need to get all up in arms about it unless someone decides to start using it.

[freemarket--2008]

Agreed

There are alot of stupid things patented every day. If people get this worked up over a patent, I can't imagine any company risking the PR backlash of producing an actual product with it.

[The_Nirvana]

Apparently you are the only one..

who read and understood the article. It appears most people have just read the headline (misleading) and started flaming Philips. Honestly I am tired of these sensational headlines from CNET. Seriously, why couldn't they have used a more descriptive title for this piece of news?

[ralfthedog]

Philips can be a hero!

Philips can patent this technology, then not let anyone use it. Thank you Philips, you have saved us from Max headroom!

[c.Lake]

I believe there's some confusion?

Do you really think that they when through all the trouble and expense of inventing this technology, applying for the patent, just to.. what NOT use it? Not sell it to the highest bidder? Does that make any sense?

I believe there's some confusion? Philips is NOT talking about placing this technology inside consumer products for us to buy at Circuit city (they're not THAT stupid). This device goes to the networks; i.e.. ABC, FOX, etc. You SEE the difference? Philips doesn't have to get our approval or disapproval at all. The article clearly states that it will be the "Broadcaster's choice to use this technology". Not us. We'll have NO say in this matter.

I think we can all agree that Hollywood will use this device, without a second though.

[engstromm]

This explains everything!

Now I understand why my Philips TV and the Philips TV's of many, many other consumers have turned out to be total garbage and Philips refuses to do anything about the situation. They'be been concentrating on a global health initiative - By creating this device they will prevent people from watching so much television and by creating junk TV's that burn up after a month or two of use they are ensuring that we will all get up and go do something and be more active - therefore more healthy!

Seriously though, Philips has turned into a poor run company, producing poor / useless products for the consumer and thereby alienating their consumers. If you think I am kidding, do a search on Philips Televisions and see just how many hits you get with people that have TV's that have burned up after months. My old TV was a Philips that lasted for over fifteen years... my new philips should have lasted at least that long... Just goes to show you where most of these companies are heading nowadays.

Here is a link (sorry, I've not posted here before, but I know you can do this) http://www.coxesroost.net/journal/2004/12/11/television-repair

[aabcdefghij987654321]

Something like this is already in use

Haven't any of you noticed that some DVDs have commercials at the front that refuse to allow you to use the remote to bypass them?

The feature was originally intended to make sure you saw the FBI and Interpol warnings and couldn't claim "I just skip those" as an excuse for piracy but the less honest (hello Disney) vendors have put it to less savory uses.

[engstromm]

Regarding Disney...

Disney has started marketing their DVD's with something called "QUICK START" (might have the name wrong - but close) which allows you to just jump right to the movie... Therefore I don't know that it is fair to include Dinsey in will all the other Studios...

[wolf1296]

Legal and Non-Legal

I have seen some of the arguments earlier and I do think there might be a legal argument in this. However, I'm not a lawyer and in today's age, I'm sure there are lawyers out there already putting together info on this case to prepare to file. All they need is an icon to push it. Any volunteers?

Personally, I absolutely hate the idea and would like to see the inventor of the technology paraded naked through the center of town drenched in honey surrounded by a group of bears.

Here is the call to action for all hackers. Here is your opportunity to provide a service to the populace that most people may actually like. Teach us all how to rip out the technology from our future boxes so it can't affect us. Find the chip and give us detailed instructions on how to remove it.

Finally, I would love to see the populace for once lobby congress and industry against this move. When will the citizens of the USA finally quit whining about everything and actually try to do something. This could be a good cause for us to tell industry to quit trying to nickel and dime us for everything. And the big companies advertising their crap can go jump in a lake because they already make billions off of us.

[Steve Jordan]

Go ahead, make it.

Hey, let Phillips or anyone else try to sell a TV or DRV that does this. It'll sell about as well as a car that automatically turns into the drive-thru of every McDonalds along your route.

[bdkennedy1]

Oh THAT should be popular

.

[Wiggletoe]

Phillips won't see $ from me.

I'll find ways to not purchase or use Phillips products.

[webdev511]

So why would I pay for this?

Sorry, but I can't see any reason why I would pay a cable/sattlite company a monthly fee and hardware that removes ths choice of watching or not watching commercials. There isn't anything on tv that's so good I'd sit through commercials for it.

As others have posted, hello analog connections. get out the VCR or mythtv and timeshift it yourself. Otherwise I'll wait until it comes out on dvd and put it into my netflix que.

[Webacco CEO]

Philips New Invention (CounterMeasure)

**NEW**
Upgrade your box today.
With this new device, someone who installs a workaround to the software on our commercial boxes will be detonated. Just so we won't kill them immediately though, you have ten seconds to run like hell.

[Webacco CEO]

Philips New Invention (CounterMeasure)

**NEW**
Upgrade your box today.
With this new device, someone who installs a workaround to the software on our commercial boxes will be detonated. Just so we won't kill them immediately though, you have ten seconds to run like hell.

Philips
COUNTERMEASURE
Tamper with your box our ass.

[Cinderz]

All about the money

Advertisers are loosing money. Huge amounts of money are spent on network airtime. Primetime being the most heavily viewed also cost the most. So this would be a way of making a portion of it back. I wouldn't be surprised to hear about this being helped along by those very same advertisers that are loosing money.

[Seaspray0]

available alternatives will kill broadcast TV

Let's see... there's already 20 minutes of commercials per hour. That's makes 1 minute of commercials, 2 minutes of program. Now lets add in all the infomercials which are on almost every channel between 2am and 6am... Wow! Half of TV is commercials, if not more... and this is how it is on cable and satelite as well and we pay for it.

And, to further annoy me, they crank up the volume to about twice what the program is showing. I might consider watching them if they weren't trying to hurt my ears. The mute button now has all the letters worn off.

You can bet that I and others will no longer be watching broadcast TV if this continues... not when I can go rent a movie for $1 a day out of a DVD vending machine (now available at my local store). That's a movie a night for less that cable or satelite.

Broadcast TV no longer had a monopoly on what we choose to watch since the the invention of the VCR... not when movies can now be purchased directly. Some shows are even available for free download on the internet. Advertisers, beware! The public will only tollerate so much before casting your broadcast medium adrift.

[ralfthedog]

Software must have hardware to run on.

Philips cant just put this software on the network and have it run. It needs some kind of cable box or DVR to run on. They may decide to sell it to your local cable company, or the courts may require TiVo or Replay to put it in the next update, but the networks can't just make it run on your TV.

[MTGrizzly]

What?

So, you can't change channels while a commercial is playing without paying for it? So, when can you change the channel without paying for it? Who decides which "commercial" is pre-emptive? It seems to me that, too often, when I change channels during one commercial, I get another commercial.

Do advertisers want you to change channels only during the programs that are supposed to paying for? Given the current increase in the numbers of commercial messages, particularly on Discovery, and ever shrinking amount of TV that is actually aimed at "entertainment", is this a particularly good idea? I mean, it seems this product would make you choose between watching one channel all the time, trying to change the channel during the 1.5 minutes between commercials or just chucking it all and reading a book...

Oh, and what about those annoying "mini-commercials" that most of the cable networks run along the bottom of screen inbetween the actual commercials? Would you be able to change the channel during those? How about product placements? Better buy one TV for each channel, because it seems there is less and less time on broadcast and cable TV that is not devoted to advertising in one form or another.

[MTGrizzly]

What?

So, you can't change channels while a commercial is playing without paying for it? So, when can you change the channel without paying for it? Who decides which "commercial" is pre-emptive? It seems to me that, too often, when I change channels during one commercial, I get another commercial.

Do advertisers want you to change channels only during the programs that are supposed to paying for? Given the current increase in the numbers of commercial messages, particularly on Discovery, and ever shrinking amount of TV that is actually aimed at "entertainment", is this a particularly good idea? I mean, it seems this product would make you choose between watching one channel all the time, trying to change the channel during the 1.5 minutes between commercials or just chucking it all and reading a book...

Oh, and what about those annoying "mini-commercials" that most of the cable networks run along the bottom of screen inbetween the actual commercials? Would you be able to change the channel during those? How about product placements? Better buy one TV for each channel, because it seems there is less and less time on broadcast and cable TV that is not devoted to advertising in one form or another.

[gawdess]

Here's a marketing idea for Phillips!

If you could manufacture TV's that would automatically turn down the volume at the beginning of program breaks, during commericals, then turn the volume back up when the program starts again...YOU MIGHT SELL MORE FREAKIN' TVs!!!

Here's a quarter, go buy yourself a clue Phillips.

gawdess

[Charles Newbury]

Please, oh please, make it universally mandatory!

I can think of no better means of boosting the book market!

Sarcasm aside, where would this stop? A little tweaking and you
could be locked into viewing the entire program. A little more
tweaking and you could be locked into the channel for the
evening...unless you pay yet another fee.

Extortion: noun. The practice of obtaining something, esp. money,
through force or threats.

[ChazzMatt]

consumers won't buy Philips TVs -- good

this story is getting a lot of coverage -- now in the mainstream press (like ABC News) , not just technical press (CNET) .

I think Philips will soon be foreced to disavow their creation or face consumer backlash from people who think this technology is in their TV products. Who wants to buy a Philips HDTV where you are forced to watch the ads? (People will think that, since they've filed for a patent.)

[bluemist9999]

I don't see anyone using it

If any DVR or TV manufacturer did this, I truly doubt consumers will be out buying their products, because there are alternatives, even if the alternative is to watch an older TV (or not watch TV).

As long as viable alternatives exist, I don't see this being much if a problem.

[Christopher Hall]

It'll never sell

And even if it did find its way into consumer electronics and end-user content, they'd have a revolution on their hands. What's with all these companies FORCING their will on the consumer?

It's outta hand.

[Earl Benser]

It might sell....

... if someone publishes a hack that disables the deivce. But it wont
sell well, even with a hack.