Cable Gets On Board with TiVo

Cable appears to be getting on board with TiVo.

In its fourth quarter reporting released late Wednesday, the DVR pioneer said its service is now operational in New England systems operated by Comcast. The region represents the cable giant's largest market with almost 2 million subscribers. And TiVo's Tom Rogers said he expects marketing of the DVR product "to increase as Comcast gains greater experience with the offering."

Also, Rogers said TiVo service with Cox is going through technology trials and will soon launch in the MSO's New England market.

"With both Comcast a reality and Cox in trial, our mass distribution strategy is making significant in-roads, effectively unleashing the power of TiVo beyond the confines of a dedicated hardware consumer electronic business," Rogers said.

Despite the good cable news, TiVo reported a drop in subscriptions from outside service providers, amounting to a 155,000 net decline for the quarter. The fall was attributed to DIRECTV no longer deploying new TiVo boxes and other mass distribution deals still in the early phases of deployment.

TiVo-owned net subscriptions climbed by 33,000 during the three-month period. The company finished the fourth quarter with 1.745 million TiVo-owned subscriptions and 3.946 million total subscriptions.