Yahoo, TiVo Partner for DVR Programming

Users of TiVo's Series2 digital video recorders will be able to program their devices from the Yahoo TV section of Yahoo's Web portal, the companies announced Monday.

At Yahoo TV, TiVo Series2 users with a Yahoo user ID will be able to schedule recordings of television shows starting today. Yahoo TV is a section of Yahoo's portal devoted to TV content, including news, show times, photos, and video clips.

TiVo Series2 users already have the capability to program their devices over the Internet using the company's TiVo Online Scheduling service.

Other Plans

Yahoo and TiVo plan to deepen their partnership in coming months by making some Yahoo services, such as photos, traffic, and weather, available through the TiVo service, the companies say.

Jupiter Research analyst Michael Gartenberg found the announcement quite underwhelming. "Lots of buzz about the TiVo and Yahoo deal today, but I'm not sure what the fuss is all about," he wrote in his official Jupiter Research blog.

Gartenberg's lack of enthusiasm stems from the fact that TiVo owners already can program their Series2 devices online, and that, according to recent Jupiter Research surveys, consumers aren't interested in accessing the types of services Yahoo plans to provide through TiVo in the future. "The market has told vendors time and time again that they are not interested in this functionality," Gartenberg wrote.