TiVo Subscriber Changes (Monthly & Lifetime)

[Morpheux]

I just got an email from TiVo (as follows). The monthly price is going up from $9.95 to $12.95 BAD, but the Lifetime is going back down to $199 from $249 HOT/WARM

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear valued TiVo subscriber*,

Effective April 2, 2002, the TiVo monthly subscription fee will increase
from $9.95 to $12.95 per month. You will notice the change on your credit
card statement.

We have not raised our monthly fee since our launch three years ago.
We're committed to continue delivering the same great quality of service
you already enjoy, and this adjustment will help cover the costs of
operating our business.

Because we value your loyalty, we're extending a limited offer**. Change
to a Product Lifetime subscription BEFORE April 2 and you'll enjoy a $50
savings off the regular price of $249. You will receive a Product
Lifetime*** subscription for a discounted, one-time fee of $199.

To take advantage of this limited-time offer, simply log on to:
http://www.tivo.com/manage
or call us at 1-877-367-8486.

Thank you for your continued support!

- The TiVo Team

*We're only sending this notice to registered customers of TiVo -- in
other words, this message isn't spam. However, if you've somehow
received this message in error, please reply to remove@tivo.com and
we'll remove you from our records.

** Offer only applies to monthly TiVo service subscriptions active as of
11:59 pm PT, February 25, 2002. Offer valid from March 1, 2002 through
11:59 pm PT, April 1, 2002. Offer and new monthly price do not apply to
subscriptions on DIRECTV Receivers with TiVo.

*** The Product Lifetime service subscription is tied to the TiVo Service
Number of the recorder, not your name -- in other words, it is for the
lifetime of this specific recorder, not your lifetime. If you choose to
sell or give this recorder to someone else, the subscription will remain
with this recorder. The Product Lifetime subscription cannot be transferred
to another recorder of a different make, model, or manufacturer. Each
recorder purchased requires its own subscription. But, don't worry: if you
repair or replace this recorder through the manufacturer or TiVo authorized
program, the Product Lifetime subscription will still be active.

 

[LordSnailz]

for those new tivo owners - opt for the lifetime subscription, once you've tried tivo for a few months you can't live without it. I ended paying for 3 months before going for the lifetime ... just my 2cents

 

[NICKel]

13.00 is getting expensive for a glorofied TV guide.

 

[Dunbar]

The problem with lifetime subs is the high liklihood your current Tivo will be obseleted. This is particularly true with people, like me, who have DirecTivos.

 

[Crucial]

<< 13.00 is getting expensive for a glorofied TV guide. >>



TIVO is so much more than a glorofied TV guide

Do you even own one?

 

[Sepen]

FYI, not that it matters but this is only for the standalone Tivo's, not the DirecTivos.

 

[riznick]

<< 13.00 is getting expensive for a glorofied TV guide. >>



I bashed Tivo as a glorified TV Guided for the longest time, but then after using one, I got addicted.
Tivo is pretty awesome.

 

[maukdaddy]

do you have to subscribe to use your TIVO?!? I was thinking about buying one, but not if I have to pay monthly to use it...

 

[FlasHBurN]

just get a replay instead, no worry about the monthly fees nonsense.

 

[dolph]

^ what he said

 

[emonkey]

Its good their dropping it to $199 again (which is still a bit too high IMO. If I could do it again I'd go replay 2000).

 

[netmamma]

We've one Tivo and one Replay. I absolutely love my Tivo. The Replay is fine--it does the job, but you just can't love the thing. It isn't well designed enough. We got our Tivo (lifetime) in August 2000 (during the Anandtech wave of Sears clearances $99 for the 14 hour unit and $100 rebate)--and I can't think of a better buy. Last week during the CompUSA 80-gig $99 sale, I picked up a disk and upgraded our unit to 88 hours.

Tivo is a lifestyle, not a TV guide.

 

[RossMAN]

If you can find a TiVo on clearance for under $99 at Walmart B&M or Target B&M then the lifetime subscription is worth it.

Otherwise TiVo = bad/inferior, ReplayTV = good/superior.

Any questions?

Good.

 

[sigmatic]

People keep running away from the $200 lifetime tivo price.

I've had tivo for over two years. I have friends who got it even earlier than myself and still use it. Back then, they said that it would be obsolete within two years.

They're still paying $10 a month, and soon it'll be $13, but I paid $200 from the very beginning. What does that mean? well, at $120 a year, I paid for a year and 8 months of service. I've been using it for two years and two months (got it at christmas I believe).

So now it probably isn't worth getting a lifetime subscription anymore, but I'm glad I got it when I did, because I sure got a lot of use out of it. As for ReplayTV, it does look cool, but back in the day, it was in legal trouble and I was worried of spending $400 on a machine that would become obsolete. TiVo just seemed like the only choice. Regardless, it's really useful, and I don't regret getting one at all.

 

[AmdInside]

Just curious....if a house has two Tivo setups, do you have to pay for subscription fees for each unit? That sucks if you do.

 

[LordSnailz]

last I remember the lifetime subscription fee is attached to the TIVO not by name/househould.

 

[Kickboy]

FlasHBurN posted


<<
just get a replay instead, no worry about the monthly fees nonsense.
>>



Gee thats a great deal, Buy a 40 tivo for $399 + $249 subscription fee (currently $199)
OR get the supper hot deal on a replay unit!

$699 for a 40 hours unit! No monthly fee!

Lets do the math real quick, without the current deal it would be $50 cheaper
with the current deal its $100 dollars cheaper.

 

[MagicWandShop]

<< Just curious....if a house has two Tivo setups, do you have to pay for subscription fees for each unit? That sucks if you do. >>


For the standalone Tivo the subscription is tied to the unit.
For DirecTivo, one subscription covers all your DirecTivo units, and you are only subject to the DIRECTV $5/month mirroring fee. (One nice thing about the DirecTivo is that you can record two different programs at once while watching a third previously recorded show!)

- Don
Magic Wand Shop @ eBay

 

[Crucial]

<< If you can find a TiVo on clearance for under $99 at Walmart B&M or Target B&M then the lifetime subscription is worth it.

Otherwise TiVo = bad/inferior, ReplayTV = good/superior.

Any questions?

Good. >>



Just one

How can you back up your statement? Explain your reasoning.

 

[Dood]

Yeah, Directivo rocks. Dual tuners, highly hackable. The DTV compressed video is stored in raw format on the Tivo. Standalones (Tivo and replay) re-encode the video source, so there is some quality loss. And the Phillips Directivos are about $99 now and going fast. Get them while you can!!!

 

[RossMAN]

<<

<< If you can find a TiVo on clearance for under $99 at Walmart B&M or Target B&M then the lifetime subscription is worth it.

Otherwise TiVo = bad/inferior, ReplayTV = good/superior.

Any questions?

Good. >>



Just one

How can you back up your statement? Explain your reasoning. >>



Because I said so, good enough for me.

 

[ccity]

One word of warning with TIVO, I own one w/ lifetime subscription. At least in my case once you buy a subscription you are stuck with it on that TIVO and you cannot move it to new unit. I found a 40 hour SOny TIVO from crutchfield a long time ago for $99 - but I couldn't buy it because I would have had to buy lifetime service again because you can't transfer it, that is crap. Speaking as someone who hacked his unit with a bigger hard drive and has now voided his warranty, I am a little worried, if the modem, or any other part of my TIVO dies, I am out the TIVO AND the LIfetime service, RIP-OFF, but I am stuck....

 

[renfield33]

yeah... tivo makes watching tv worthwhile... basically you can watch 1.5 hrs in 1 hour.

i got mine for $90 from wal-mart

i am afraid mine is going to die plus i have a roommate, so we just split the monthly cost.

 

[EDiT]

<< One word of warning with TIVO, I own one w/ lifetime subscription. At least in my case once you buy a subscription you are stuck with it on that TIVO and you cannot move it to new unit. I found a 40 hour SOny TIVO from crutchfield a long time ago for $99 - but I couldn't buy it because I would have had to buy lifetime service again because you can't transfer it, that is crap. Speaking as someone who hacked his unit with a bigger hard drive and has now voided his warranty, I am a little worried, if the modem, or any other part of my TIVO dies, I am out the TIVO AND the LIfetime service, RIP-OFF, but I am stuck.... >>



I had always heard that if your unit died you just had to send them the dead unit and they would let you transfer the lifetime subscription. Can anyone verify that?

Also, with DirecTiVo, how does that work? You only pay one lifetime fee, but is it still tied to one unit? The only way you'de be out of luck then is if you wanted to sell the unit, because even if it died, you would still own a lifetime subscription on one of your boxes.

 

[Crucial]

"But, don't worry: if you repair or replace this recorder through the manufacturer or TiVo authorized
program, the Product Lifetime subscription will still be active"

Dont know if this is still valid after hacking your TIVO