TiVo, which just announced better-than-expected earnings (PDF) earlier today, has also announced a forthcoming model that offers “four-stream transcoding” and the ability to send those streams over the internet to up to four devices, both for iOS and Android smartphones and tablets for either pre-recorded material or live TV. The future product, modelled after last year’s TiVo Preview, may also offer Netflix and other online video services.
The TiVo Preview, which was offered to cable operators but not available at retail, featured the ability to record up to four channels simultaneously and functioned as a centralized “whole home” DVR unit. The addition of being able to stream content out while transcoding the content for mobile on-the-fly in a future offering would allow users to watch (or continue watching) content while on the go using Wi-Fi or possibly 3G and make the idea more palatable to retail buyers.
The company demonstrated a working prototype of the box it refers to as an “IP-STB,” or a retail set-top box that leverages an IP address to receive as well as stream programming, at this year’s CES convention — but has thus far not spoken about pricing or offered a firm date beyond “by the end of summer.” While no explicit mention of online content was mentioned, the ability to include offerings from services such as YouTube, Netflix, Amazon Instant or other services would likely add value to the unit for most consumers
