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TiVo debuts in Taiwan

TiVo, a popular digital video recording service in the US, officially made its debut in Taiwan yesterday, making the country its first expansion base in Asia, company executives said.

"TiVo is not just a digital video recorder, as it has become a lifestyle product in the US. It is a home appliance incorporating computer technology that enables consumers to enjoy home entertainment," Chien Ta-wei (錢大衛), president of TGC Inc (替您錄科技), told a press conference yesterday.

TGC is a joint venture set up last year, with US-based TiVo Inc as the major shareholder.

With offices in the US, Taiwan and Shanghai, TGC has exclusive rights to the TiVo service in Taiwan, China, Hong Kong and Singapore.

TiVo basically refers to a set-top box that can record TV programs digitally onto a hard disk. Viewers can then skip commercials and pause, rewind or fast-forward programs.

The company will offer 160GB of storage on the set-top box in Taiwan, which is able to record up to 180 hours of shows on low-resolution mode, according to Chien.

There will be other services for subscribers, such as a TV program guide, reviews about the latest TV shows or automatic recording for the entire season of a series, he added.

The box, which is contract-manufactured by Universal Scientific Industry Co (環隆電器), will retail for NT$12,900.

There will be no subscription fee for the first year, but users will need to pay NT$1,500 per year starting from the second year.

To promote the service, TGC has roped in Synnex Technology International Corp (聯強), Tatung Co (大同) as well as PC Home Online (網路家庭) to be the channel distributors.

"We are open to partnerships with digital and cable TV service providers or other content providers, as we want to offer more contents to local viewers," said general manager of TGC Travis Lin (林新建).

Launched in the US in 1999, TiVo has now garnered over 4 million subscribers, translating to a 35 percent share in the digital video recording services market there, he added.

As US TiVo subscribers are now in a beta test to transfer recorded television shows onto Apple iPods or Sony's PlayStation Portable, the company does not rule out the possibility of doing so in Taiwan.

"We will make it happen here as long as there is a demand in the local market," Lin added.

However, an analyst said that TiVo needs to offer something different if it wants to capture a larger subscription base.

"TiVo will have to provide more content and channels for local viewers, as our consumer behavior differs from that of Americans," said Helen Chen (陳佩君), an analyst with Polaris Securities Co (寶來證券).

Furthermore, as there are similar devices in the market that offer the recording feature -- such as DVD recorders and Xbox 360, the company might want to price the set-top box at a more affordable price, she added.
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