Posted on 04/20/2006 6:26:51 AM PDT by Xenophobic Alien
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- In this era of easy ad skipping with TiVo-like video recorders, could television viewers one day be forced to watch commercials with a system that prevents channel switching?
Yes, according to Royal Philips Electronics. A patent application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office said researchers of the Netherland-based consumer electronics company have created a technology that could let broadcasters freeze a channel during a commercial, so viewers wouldn't be able to avoid it.
The pending patent, published on March 30, said the feature would be implemented on a program-by-program basis. Devices that could carry the technology would be a television or a set-top-box.
Philips acknowledged, however, that the anti-channel changing technology might not sit well with consumers and suggested in its patent filing that consumers be allowed to avoid the feature if they paid broadcasters a fee.
On Wednesday, company officials issued a statement that noted the technology also enables the opposite: allowing viewers to watch television without advertising. The intention was never to force viewers to watch ads against their will, the company said of the technology.
"We developed a system where the viewer can choose, at the beginning of a movie, to either watch the movie without ads, or watch the movie with ads," the company stated. "It is up to the viewer to take this decision, and up to the broadcaster to offer the various services."
The company also said it had no plans to use the technology in any of its products.
Philips wanted to provide the technology and seek the patent only as part of the broader developments within the industry, Philips spokesman Andre Manning said.
Have you all noticed that most new dvds now won't let you skip through the previews/commercials? It is infuriating.. and whoever did that should be dragged out into the streets and SHOT! =P (Only slightly kidding..)
So when are they coming out with that chair that wraps it's arms around you as the commercial comes on?
That's when I get things done, like raid the frig, shift cloths in the washer/dryer, hit the head, etc.
Unless it is Disney's cash cow: ESPN. You get commercials and pay for it as well.
I really don't expect to be watching it much again.
- John
The new trend... during major news events, the local Fox affiliate will broadcast the Fox News programming. I think I have seen another network even do this with the CNN feed.
I still find FR to be able to carry the breaking reports from the different wire services, FReeper on the Street, and cable/radio/tv reports AHEAD of what I am getting from television myself. TV gives me some footage of an event. But the yammering talking heads don't give me much detail.
Just another sad example of a poorly misunderstood technology looking for a home with you....
/s
Ahhh...But you can do neither.
Wait a minute!
I have Comcast HD and the most frequent commercials I see are from Comcast...It's COMCASTIC!!!
See, I got the message. I just don't know why.
I don't watch any major network "shows", just events.
The 2 INHD channels seem obsessed with running their upcoming schedules as commercials too.
Back on topic...If they're talking about stopping you from being able to switch channels when they run a commercial, I wonder if they'll be able to controll the OFF switch, heck, maybe they'll be able to freeze you in your chair so you can't even get up and pull the plug!
We are still FORCED to have those "bugs" on our screens. You know the ones that say CNN, CMT, ESPN, ABC, etc.. They are located in the lower right hand corner of the screen. We, the viewing consumers are smart enough to know which channel we are watching. NASA TV has recently got bitten by the "bug". I hate it. I have read that those things would have a tendacy of burning into the screen of a plasma tv. I, along with others hate to FORCED to watch something we don't want to see.
So was Anthony Burgess :-)
What makes you think they won't disable the off button?
That's what I don't like about this technology. Once a commercial starts, you cannot change the channel. You have to wait for the commercials to end, then you will be able to change the channel while the show is on. That means no more channel surfing. If you change channels and hit a commercial, you have to wait for the commercial to end before changing channels again. Or you get to pay a fee so you can change the channel. Don't kid yourself, the TV executives love this idea. Last year, one even said that changing the channel or fast forwarding a VCR was equivalent to stealing TV.
We just put the DVD in and turn on the TV when all the crap is over with. :)
I won't try to persuade you to return to tv. I will say this:
With the trend to releasing complete tv seasons to DVD within a year or two of broadcast (of shows like 24 or Sopranos, to pick 2 popular series), you don't even need to have cable to watch these shows.
Okay, you didn't see it when it was first broadcast. How does this make your life "suck"? It doesn't. In fact you could survive just as well without ever seeing these programs. But in the long run, you can still see them and get the full experience of the program.
What's more, many people are timeshifting their viewings anyway. This removes that step. Maybe in the future all fictional programming will be "on demand", serving the viewer when he wants to watch it, rather than camping out on the couch to wait for the show to begin.
If you want to update, DVD recorders do the same thing, and you can usually fast-forward faster, edit commercials and keep the disc if you want, and other goodies.
Well, there just might be a backlash and people will just read or have sex or something instead of watching TV!
Try pushing the TITLE MENU button on your remote while you close the DVD drawer. Sometimes it will bypass all the "must see tv".
If you use cabel or satellite TV, it will likely be in the receiver box they provide for you.
Two years ago, after the 42nd rate increase, it dawned on me; why am I paying almost $50 a month for this dreck? I pulled the plug on my cable TV. Never regretted it.
Easy - Don't watch TV at all. Problem solved.
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