TiVo Remote-Scheduling App Launched for BlackBerry Smartphones

TiVo and Research in Motion (RIM) on Wednesday launched a free remote-scheduling application for BlackBerry devices. The app, which works with standalone TiVo Series2 and later DVR's (but not with TiVo-enabled cable and satellite boxes) and requires BlackBerry OS 4.2.0 or later, features an interface that replicates the look-and-feel of the standard TiVo set-top interface. Among other things, the app lets users browse programming categories, popular shows, and daily picks; search for shows by keyword, title, category and actor/director; and add programming alerts to their BlackBerry calendar.

TiVo and RIM first announced that they were collaborating on a remote scheduling app in September, 2008, and said that the app would be available later that year. They also promised that future versions of the app would "simplify mobile access to video content." An article in Paid Content speculates that the delay in the app's launch was due to TiVo mobile technology partner, Action Engine, going out of business.

In other TiVo news: The company's Audience Research & Measurement arm said Monday that, after two weeks on the air, an average of 46% of the TV audience for NBC's "The Jay Leno Show" opted to record it and watch it later, according to data generated by the TiVo StopWatch ratings service. This, the company says, represents an improvement over an average 70% of timeshifted viewing that NBC programs experienced last year during the 10:00PM hour. However, TiVo cautions, nearly 20% of the show's timeshifted viewing occurred within one hour of the start of the program, up from 13% last season, and further slicing into NBC's 11:00PM timeslot that includes "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien." "Depending on who you ask, NBC's glass is either half full or half empty," Todd Juenger, VP and general manager of TiVo Audience Research & Measurement, said in a prepared statement. "While Leno is succeeding in reducing the amount of timeshifted viewing for NBC's 10:00PM timeslot, he certainly isn't 'TiVo-proof' as nearly 50% of viewing is still timeshifted. Moreover, those timeshifted viewers are nearly twice as likely to watch within one hour, displacing NBC's 11:00PM timeslot."