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Boxee rebranded its box from Boxee TV to Boxee Cloud DVR and changed the services it offers.

“Our pitch to them is if we move the DVR to the cloud, we can do dynamic ad insertion, so instead of losing the ability to monetize that audience if they’re watching a week later or binge viewing if they’ve recorded the entire season, if you could serve fresh ads whenever somebody is watching it … that is a better way to monetize DVR.”

ed us to believe the future of TV is not apps, it’s the experience and the content.”

“We expect to see the Add-to-DVR option drive tune-in among consumers, as they are reminded about their favorite shows through websites, banner and mobile ads,” said Viggle president and COO Greg Consiglio, in a statement. “As an added benefit, viewers who check into any TV programs with the Viggle app will earn points that can be redeemed for free movies, TV shows and music at Viggle.com.”

The iPad may soon join the remote control and DVR in the pantheon of transformative TV devices, if it hasn’t already. Thanks to that prospect, its influence has stretched deeply into media research.  

Consumers would welcome more apps, such as WatchESPN, allowing them to view live content on their iPads anywhere, anytime. Consumers also appreciate opportunities to view content via HBO Go and Netflix platforms.

-Consumers appreciate the opportunity to view content on iPads, but also engage in social media activities at the same time. Networks can capitalize on this.

With an Intel-designed set-top box, people won't have to own DVRs or even plan to record programs.

Negotiations with media companies for content rights could delay new services and limit some features, though Intel vows to enter some markets by the end of the year.

"I've never seen as much innovation in television as there is right now," says Ulf Ewaldsson, chief technology officer at Swedish telecom-equipment giant Ericsson, which plans to step up its own TV efforts

“For movies and retailers, time-shifting can be a concern,” says Starcom’s Bowe. “That is why live TV is interesting to a lot of TV advertisers. Advertisers are demanding immediacy. Amassing an audience on a particular night is important.” Combating ad skipping empowered by the DVR is a bigger issue for TV stations than it is for network TV.

Advertisers typically buy local TV using Nielsen’s live-only or live-plus-same-day program ratings. Network TV is bought on C3 commercial ratings, which includes live viewing and three days of DVR playback. That means local TV advertisers pay for viewers who fast-forward through their commercials.

Live TV and social media were made for each other. In 2013, 36 million people in the United States sent 990 million Tweets about TV shows they were watching live, according to Nielsen SocialGuide. Moreover, 84% of people who have smartphones or computer tablets use those devices while watching TV.

Still, you might say a revolution is brewing in the living room — and this one will be televised. It portends not only a change in the TV viewing experience but also poses a threat to cable and satellite TV distributors. Even network executives' notions about scheduling — how positioning a new show adjacent to a popular program in the evening lineup to drive ratings — look anachronistic at a time when Nielsen estimates that 47% of all American households have DVRs and can watch recorded shows whenever they choose, and 55% of broadband homes have at least one TV connected to the Internet, according to market researcher the Diffusion Group.

Concerns about how to reach this group known as the "never connecteds" and count their viewing in a show's ratings adds to a list of headaches that include slumping prime-time broadcast TV ratings and the flight of advertisers to cable.

these smart TVs may look dated compared with what Silicon Valley giant Intel has in store for later this year, not to mention whatever Apple Inc. is planning with its mysterious but hotly anticipated flat-screen TV.

But negative comments about the feature continued. A more recent factor was the highly publicized revelations about surveillance activities by the National Security Agency. “What pushed me over the hump was the whole NSA sort of thing,” Huggers says. “I don’t want to go there.”

Not that Intel doesn’t plan to offer plenty of ways to personalize the TV-watching experience. For example, the company cites a Personal Profiles feature that helps switch between individuals using the device, so they have access to relevant content and recommendations. Another option lets users add favorites so they have access to recently watched shows, with the ability to instantly pick up in the program where they left off.

Still another feature, called Spotlight, integrates recommendations based on what’s trending in social media as well as curating content based on a user’s age, interest and time of watching, the company says.

Tomorrowish’s claim to fame is saying that it has the only social media DVR. The company takes the US East Coast conversation during prime time, curates it, saves it, and then brings it together with the West Coast airings.

For brands, Tomorrowish will give them more engagement with viewers on social media, sponsored content, and celebrity conversations. Diving into the Social TV, it will work across all platforms so that viewers can interact with shows on mobile devices, TV, or computers. There’s also a mobile API that developers can tap into.

A mélange of TV resource apps are getting together to help each other, and their users. Dijit, Thuuz, Tomorrowish, IVA and Simple.TV are partnering to integrate their products and services. The theory seems to be that they are stronger working together, rather than alone. Given the non-competitive positioning of each, this could be a boon for TV viewers. First a quick summary of what each of the companies does. Dijit’s NextGuide helps TV viewers discover new TV shows and remember to watch them. Thuuz provides real-time sports updates helping fans tune to the most interesting game on TV at any given time. Tomorrowish let’s viewers watching a show or event on-demand replay the social media buzz from the first broadcast. Internet Video Archive (IVA) specializes in providing show and movie trailers. Simple.TV provides live TV and network DVR services.

Twitter based information is now directly integrated into the guide of the X1 platform. Not only will users be able to scroll through the guide and see which shows are currently trending on Twitter, they will be able to reorganize and filter the programming based on what’s trending and change the channel from there.

Last week, Xbox and Twitter announced that Twitter will be directly integrated into the Xbox One’s TV experience. Automatically displaying tweets related to the show you are watching in a Lower Third type overlay experience as well as Trending hashtag and topic information integrated into the Xbox One’s OneGuide.

Curatorr may be powering curated streams of show based twitter content for EVERY show in Xbox One TV. Keeping in mind here that Curatorr is a Twitter owned product, these curated streams of content can be further fine tuned after the initial airing of shows and can then be “restreamed” as a Social DVR of sorts.

Investors should keep tabs on Verizon's negotiations with Intel to see if Verizon acquires the OnCue Internet-based TV services. If the deal goes through, investors should pay attention to how Verizon plans to use the OnCue services. Bundling OnCue services with Redbox Instant would incentivize subscribers to use Redbox services as a complete TV and movie entertainment package. Outerwall would greatly benefit from such a bundle because more Redbox users translates into expanding revenue. Also, additional offerings under the Redbox name will improve the company brand.

OnCue would be a good addition to Verizon because the company is already in the content business with Redbox Instant and FiOS TV. The question is whether Verizon can negotiate a good deal with Intel. The OnCue service would work well bundled with FiOS and Redbox Instant, or left as a stand-alone product.

The features of this service resemble those of a DVR, but the main difference is every show is recorded and available at any time. The OnCue hardware and services are currently being beta-tested by Intel employees and select users.