Tivo Case Analysis

Tivo Case Analysis

Marketing Management Assignment -Case Analysis #1- TiVo

1. What is TiVo?

Tivo is a digital recorder that helps viewers to take control of what they watch. The features of Tivo are recording programs as per viewers' request, suggesting the programs according to viewers' habits, ability to skip commercials, and so on.

What factors facilitate its adoption?

a. Recording the programs - easy to record, stop, rewind, and schedule recording the shows.

b. Skip the commercials - empowering the viewers to take control of what they are watching.

c. Electronic program guide (EPG) TiVo applies

i) Previews for shows to schedule recording easily with one push of button.

ii) Season pass- by pressing a "thumbs up" and "thumbs down" button, users can specify their favorite show and then TiVo will record them automatically.

iii) Suggestion- TiVo can track users' preference and make suggestions.

What factors made adoption difficult?

a. Retail execution- Salesmen in distributors turned over fast which made it hard to train them explaining to customers properly. In addition, there were various ways for salesmen to sell TiVo.

b. Pricing- the price seemed too high to be accepted by customers.

c. Awareness- the degree of awareness for TiVo remained weak and consumer remained inert because it is not their priority to improve TV viewing.

Who is TiVo best suited for?

According to the research, TiVo users mostly consisted of members who were married, between the ages of 25 and 45, and had an annual income of $70,000 to $10,000. In this regard, members with this kind of features are best suited for TiVo. We can also imply that people who have a college education, household greater income, and are heavy Internet users can be the target segment suitable for TiVo as well, because these are the features DVR users revealed according to the study in 2006.

Would you buy a TiVo? Why or Why not?

I would not because of following reasons:

a. The price is too high.

b. Internet is quite convenient to let me watch the programs I like anytime I want (ex: Youtube) without bothering to schedule recording.

2. Standpoint

d. Networks- Networks want TiVo to assist them tracking audience response and recording loyalty so that they can adjust their campaigns.

e. Advertisers- by using the data collected by TiVo, advertisers can deliver more personalized and targeted advertisement. Moreover, they can also track the response to the commercials from the audience.

f. Cable/Satellite- Cable use TiVo to help reduce subscriber chum and also serve as a competitive edge against satellite providers.

Microsoft's potential strengths

a. Existing WebTV - Microsoft can promote Ultimate TVits own existing customers. Moreover, the existing services provided by WebTV would make the service more attractive to customers.

b. Bundled with satellite television- provide viewers more options of TV programs.

c. Technologically advanced features- watching or recording two shows simultaneously, recording pay-per-view movies, 30-second skip, etc.

Microsoft's potential weakness

a. TiVo's current adoption - it might be hard for Microsoft to enter the market because consumers are used to TiVo.

b. TiVo's partnership with other industries- compared to Microsoft's cooperation with satellite television, TiVo has Amazon, Comcast, and so on to enrich its features.

3. Evaluate the campaign

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