NBC and TiVO strike strategic partnership with equity deal
NBC Leads Broadcast Networks in Support of TiVo's Personal Television Service
NEW YORK, NY/SUNNYVALE, CA - June 9, 1999 - NBC and TiVo Inc., the creator of personal
television, today announced a strategic partnership and an equity investment by
NBC, the world's leading television network. NBC's investment in TiVo signals its
continued commitment to leading the convergence of television and interactivity
and further validates TiVo's approach to personal television innovation. NBC is
the first broadcast partner to invest in TiVo's personal television model and joins
TiVo's growing group of highly respected equity investment partners including Philips
Electronics, DIRECTV, Showtime Networks, Allegro Capital, Institutional Venture
Partners, New Enterprise Associates, and Vulcan Ventures. Terms of the investment
will not be disclosed at this time.
TiVo's personal TV service enables the viewer to record up to 30 hours of programming,
creating a virtual library of shows and makes NBC programming more accessible to
viewers. As television converges into a more interactive medium, viewers will be
able to personalize their NBC viewing experience by watching NBC programming when
it fits their schedule, which TiVo refers to as 'primetime-anytime'. TiVo's state-of-the-art
personal TV service will ensure that programming is delivered to viewers according
to their preferences. Additionally, through TiVo's network showcases, NBC will further
enrich the television viewing experience by developing new programming enhancements
- such as highly-targeted promotional video - and delivering them to viewers who
record NBC shows.
Using TiVo's patented service, viewers can choose to watch what they want, when
they want, on demand. The TiVo service enables viewers to pause, rewind, and create
slow-motion effects from live television programming. TiVo's intelligent "thumbs
up, thumbs down" rating system offers a diverse selection of new programming suggestions
the individual viewer will enjoy, but may not previously have known were available.
This rating system ensures that the receiver is always full of the best programs
available on television that are of interest to the viewer.
"NBC has continued to lead in the next generation of television - Internet Enhanced
TV, Digital TV, and now personal TV - which is what TiVo is all about. TiVo has
established an innovative approach to digital recording in a way which maintains
the integrity of our advertising model," said Tom Rogers, President, NBC Cable and
Executive Vice President, NBC. "There are so many TV options today-TiVo is about
organizing choice and empowering the viewer in a way that creates a constantly changing
personal video library that will most benefit first-run programming like NBC by
increasing the viewership of programs."
"The NBC investment is a tremendous validation, not only to this category, but to
TiVo's vision of creating a better way to watch television," said Mike Ramsay, president
and chief executive officer, TiVo. "As TiVo redefines the way the world watches
television with our cutting-edge technology and personalized service offerings,
NBC will be able to use this new platform to deliver a better viewing experience."
About NBC
NBC is a global media company with broadly diverse holdings. NBC owns and operates
the NBC Television Network as well as thirteen television stations. In the United
States, NBC owns CNBC, operates MSNBC in partnership with Microsoft, and maintains
equity interests in Arts & Entertainment and The History Channel. NBC also has an
equity stake in Rainbow Programming Holdings, a leading media company with a wide
array of entertainment and sports cable channels, including the Madison Square Garden
network. Internationally, NBC owns and operates CNBC: A Service of NBC and Dow Jones
in partnership with Dow Jones & Company in Europe and Asia. In partnership with
National Geographic and Fox/BSkyB, the network owns and operates the National Geographic
Channel in Europe and Asia.
The leader among traditional media companies in Internet and new media businesses,
NBC holds equity stakes in CNET, Talk City, iVillage, Telescan, ValueVision International
and 24/7 Media. Several of NBC's Internet assets are slated to be merged with Snap.com,
the fastest-growing Internet portal, and XOOM.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: XMCM), the fastest-growing
community-based site on the Web and a leading direct e-commerce services company,
to form the seventh-largest Internet site and the first publicly traded Internet
company integrated with a major broadcaster. The new company, to be called NBC Internet
(NBCi), will use Snap.com as its umbrella consumer brand, integrating broadcast,
portal, and e-commerce services. With Microsoft, NBC owns and operates MSNBC, a
24-hour cable news network and Internet news service at www.msnbc.com. Also, together
with Microsoft and Dow Jones, NBC operates CNBC/Dow Jones Business Video, offering
video- and audio-based financial news and information to financial professionals
and institutions. Other new media innovations from NBC include interactive television
initiatives with Microsoft WebTV for Windows and WebTV Plus, TiVo, Wink-enhanced
programming with Wink Communications, NBC Intercast with Intel, electronic program
guides with Gemstar and on-demand video services with Intertainer.
About TiVo
TiVo, headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., is the originator of personal television.
The TiVo service allows consumers to take control of their television viewing by
allowing them to watch what they want, when they want. TiVo enables consumers to
pause, rewind, instant replay and playback in slow-motion any live television broadcast.
As part of TiVo's easy-to-use service and patented consumer electronics technology,
viewers can time-shift their favorite television shows and create a customized television
lineup for viewing at anytime. The company was founded in August 1997 by former
Silicon Graphics senior vice president Michael Ramsay and vice president James Barton,
both of whom have been instrumental in earlier generation efforts of interactive
video-on-demand systems and Hollywood special-effects technology. TiVo's board of
directors includes Stewart Alsop of New Enterprise Associates, Geoff Yang of Institutional
Venture Partners and WebTV founding director Randy Komisar. TiVo can be reached
on the World Wide Web at www.tivo.com
or by calling 1-877-FOR-TIVO (1-877-367-8486).