Smartphones, not DVRs, are the biggest threat to TV adverts

TV viewers are a famously fickle bunch, which tends to drive TV advertisers crazy. The prevalent theory remains that skipping past ads using a pesky DVR is the biggest enemy of marketers, but new research has once again contradicted that received wisdom. The IPG Media Lab in Los Angeles pulled together a representative group of 48 TV and online video viewers and asked them to sit through some programming while equipped with the usual "devices or distractions" that accompany their viewing habits. Central to the study was the measurement of time each person spent facing the screen and how engaged they were with the content. The first thing noted was that 94 percent of TV viewers and 73 percent of online video consumers used some other form of media to augment their visual entertainment. Smartphones were the most common, with 60 percent of test subjects resorting to their handset while gawking at the TV. That's resulted in a mediocre 52 percent attention level during actual programs and 37 percent during ads. In other words, two thirds of the time, commercials are being ignored and smartphones are helping people with that heinous behavior. Ironically, fast-forwarding adverts using a DVR garnered attention levels that were 12 percent higher, mostly because people were trying to make sure they didn't skip too far ahead. Damn, why does reality have to be all complex and stuff?

Tech Dirt

Ad Age

Comcast will start testing an IPTV service at MIT, new Xcalibur guide coming your way sooner

According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, Comcast will start testing a new video delivery system that is completely internet protocol based at the Massachussetts Institute of Technology in "the coming months." AT&T's U-verse uses IPTV already, while others use similar technology for video on-demand or some of the new initiatives that stream TV to the iPad. Comcast plans to let students watch by connecting TVs, computers or other devices to the campus network, followed by a test just for employees and eventually an all-IP service to run alongside -- but not replacing -- its traditional cable TV service. This could allow the company to deliver video to devices with no set-top box required and even potentially outside its current footprint. That however is unlikely given the headache just a move to multi-platform IP delivery might cause when it comes to negotiating broadcast rights. Being able to watch pay TV on whatever you want and potentially wherever you want may help fight off subscribers temptation for cable cutting, but between testing and the aforementioned legal wrangling, it could be a while before we get to see it.

What is much closer is the new HD and internet connected guide software we spotted testing in Georgia. As the cabler celebrates passing 20 billion video on-demand views (PR after the break), it's bringing the internet and cloud technology behind its mobile apps back to the cable box to help organize it all. Dubbed Xcalibur, the new DVR setup pictured above is available to all new customers in the Augusta, GA area now and will roll out next year, assuming there are no worldwide calamities or product delays before then.

Wall Street Journal, Comcast Voices (1), (2)

Nissho starts selling 52-inch, glasses-free 3D TV with Full HD resolution in Japan

Remember Dimenco? A four-man splinter group of former Philips employees, the company has been hard at work refining its glasses-free 3D display tech and today some of the earliest fruit of its labor is going on sale. Nissho Electronics in Japan is beginning sales of a 52-inch LCD panel that can pump out full 1080p of 3D vision without requiring any headgear from the viewer. Initially, this big lenticular display will target businesses, who'll be among the few to be able to afford the ¥1.7 million ($20,820) asking price. Other specs include a 2,000:1 contrast ratio, 8ms response time, 700 nits of brightness, and a 60Hz refresh rate. The 3D on this TV is actually described as a unique "2D + depth" implementation, which can also be used to convert 2D images in real time. Great, now take a zero out of that price, ship it westwards, and watch the sales really take off.

Impress Watch

Nissho Electronics

Hulu Plus on TiVo Premiere hands-on

As rumored, Hulu Plus is now officially available on the TiVo Premiere, and according to TiVo, this "further extends its lead as the only one-box solution that integrates in one easy-to-use user interface." We supposed this is technically true, but it depends on your definition of "integrates" -- we'll discuss why after the jump. Hulu Plus of course comes at a monthly premium, but the other news is that new TiVo Premiere owners will get the privilege gratis for six months, while existing Premiere owners get what is described as a "free trial" which we assume is the standard one month risk trial -- as opposed to the variety that doesn't require a credit card.

Hulu Plus on TiVo Premiere

Love it or not, TiVo's interface has helped make it the best consumer DVR for over 10 years -- although much of the interface looks as old as the company itself -- so last September when we heard TiVo was integrating Hulu Plus, we obviously had high expectations. Since then we've seen Hulu Plus implementations on everything from TVs, to game consoles, to portable tablets, and we're sad to say the TiVo implementation is right on par. What we mean is that Hulu Plus on the TiVo is exactly like the others, and nothing like a TiVo. Launching Hulu via the TiVo My Shows menu is almost as jarring as switching inputs on your TV, with the exception of not switching remotes, obviously. The scrub bar changes, the menus are different, even the info view looks different. So while Netflix, Blockbuster, and all the other TiVo add-ins carry on the TiVo experience, Hulu Plus does not. Now we admit this complaint is mostly superficial -- the real failure is the lack of unified search, making TiVo Premiere's universal search feature not so universal. That's right, when you search for The Office on your TiVo Premiere with Hulu Plus, you'll see results from your DVR, the guide, Netflix, and Amazon VOD; but you won't see results from Hulu Plus. TiVo tried to reassure us by saying "we are working on integrating the content into TiVo Search and plan to update with that functionality soon after," but we have a bad feeling this will be right after the rest of the Premiere UI is converted to HD.

Unlike switching inputs though, you don't have to switch remotes, but in some ways it feels like you did. The transport buttons obviously work as expected, but hitting the TiVo or Guide button takes you out of the Hulu app without warning, which can be a real drag considering how long it takes to launch and the fact that the Hulu videos won't resume. Even more odd though is that the zoom button is the browse button.

All of this reinforces our biggest fear of the future of video entertainment; a world where every content provider has their own interface and we are forced to bounce in and out of countless apps to evaluate our viewing options. This is the opposite of our vision where we can watch whatever we want, whenever we want, on any device we want, using the interface that we want. What makes this hurt the most is that TiVo was one of the only companies that seemed to share our vision, even originally touting the Premiere as the device that can bring all your viewing options "together into one unified and simple experience." So while the Hulu Plus experience is every bit as good as it is on TVs and other set-top boxes, it isn't as integrated with the TiVo Premiere experience nearly as much as, say, Hulu Plus is integrated with the Xbox 360 Dashboard.

If you were just hoping to get Hulu Plus on your HDTV without buying a new TV or another set-top, mission accomplished, but if your hopes were for a truly integrated media experience, you'll have to keep searching and waiting.

Hulu Plus on TiVo promos pop up in stores and online, suggest launch soon

Although TiVo announced it would offer Hulu Plus back in September we're still waiting for it to arrive on those Premiere DVRs. Twitter user @dlayphoto spotted these materials in their local Best Buy promising six months of the $7.99 / month service for free with the purchase of a new box -- with a new price tag -- although it's hard to see if this will apply to existing users as well. The URL on the cards leads to a (now deactivated, but larger screenshots are over at Zatz Not Funny) page where TiVo owners can input their serial number and email address to get access. Judging by the dates on the promotions, things should get rolling within the next month or so, but we'll let you know when we hear something official.

TiVo Community

@dlayphoto, Zatz Not Funny

Withings WiFi Body Scale enters the living room on Panasonic VIERA Connect TVs

Have you recently considered a Withings WiFi Body Scale only to be dismayed by its inability to display your weight on your living room TV? Well, today's your lucky day (for some of you, at least), as the company has just announced that a Withings app is now available for Panasonic VIERA Connect-enabled TVs, which will let you access your complete Health Dashboard from the comfort of your couch, or recliner as the case may be. Full press release is after the break.

DirecTV is field testing RVU, will offer satellite TV without individual receivers in October

We've been waiting since 2009 for the RVU Alliance to deliver on its promise of TV service controlled by a main server that streams content to any screen in the home without requiring any set-top boxes and it appears DirecTV is ready to make it so. A press release issued today indicates it has started field trials of the HR34 RVU server that will be the keystone in its Home Media Center, and plans to roll the service out nationwide in October. If you want to know when to start buying HDTVs like the Samsung D6000 series, it also mentions RVU certification for those and DirecTV's own C30 Home Media Clients (check out a video demo here) is expected to be finalized in June. There's been some delays but if you were also hoping that 2011 would be the year we can get rid of the cable box, the progress is looking very promising.

Engadget

Fox's latest anti-AllVid FCC filing suggests new pay-TV service is coming to gaming consoles

Forgotten what AllVid is already? Click here for more detail on the standard companies like Google and Sony are fighting for that would potentially let users directly access cable or satellite TV streams without a box. As one of the media companies trying to convince the FCC that the new AllVid replacement for CableCARD is unnecessary, Fox recently called the FCC and informed it of negotiations with a pay-TV service that wanted to license channels and VOD for streaming to videogame consoles. Even as it frets over Time Warner's TWCable iPad app, the filing suggests there's plenty of innovation going on and availability of content for consumer electronics devices already. Of course, pending any regulatory decisions we can only wonder which consoles or providers could be involved (our money is on the aforementioned Time Warner, but Cablevision, Comcast and all the rest are working on technology of their own, while AT&T finally brought its U-Verse to the Xbox here in the US last fall) but this should keep the rumor mill going until something is actually announced.

Gamasutra, Joystiq

FCC (PDF)

Review : Sharp LC-46D62U

Sharp is known for producing the best LCD TV and there latest addition is Sharp LC-46D62U
This 46 inch TV has an amazing contrast ratio and produces the right color of black which makes the pictures turn out to be great. It has a resolution of 1080p which helps in improving the picture quality drastically.

Sharp LC-46D62U  menu is easy to navigate with the help of its stylish remote. The remote can be held firmly with a strong grip and the buttons on it are easy to use. Sharp also features OPC which adjust the images according to the changes in the light in the surrounding room. It also allows user to select from the 6 pictures setting of which 5 can be adjusted. These include dynamic, standard, movie, games, PC etc. sharp LC-46D62U is very stylish to look at. Its unique and slim design makes it look very pleasing to the eyes. These features truly make it a great catch for most people