TiVo Adds More Video to iPod, PSP

Digital video recorder maker TiVo Inc. is expected to make an announcement today to allow its users to download any television program stored on their recorders to video iPods.

The new software will let users encode content into a format suitable for Apple’s iPod with video and also for Sony’s PSP.

TiVo said it will begin testing the feature over the coming weeks and will make it available in early 2006 to its TiVo Series2 subscribers. The company said it will charge an estimated $ 15 to $ 30 for the added feature.

TiVo estimates that about 300,000 of its total 3.6 million subscribers use its TiVoToGo feature, which is included with its standard box but requires using broadband cable service.

The enhanced TiVoToGo feature will also add more copy-protection measures. Recorded shows will have digital watermarks that will follow the copied program wherever it goes, giving TiVo the ability to trace the origin of a transferred program that might get posted freely onto the Internet.

TiVo insists the new functionality is not intended to wreck the economic potential of Apple’s deal with Disney. A spokesperson for Disney declined to comment, and Apple could not be reached for comment by press time.

Company is likely to strike more deals to deliver content to other devices. The company last week hired Tara Maitra as VP and general manager for content services, with a role of developing content for broadband delivery and fostering relationships with content companies. She previously worked for Comcast.

"Mobile television is going to be an increasingly demanded service by consumers," TiVo spokesman Scott Sutherland added.