Do good things come in small packages? Suddenlink Communications now has launched the TiVo Mini DVR client set-top -- less than one-fourth the size of TiVo’s full HD digital video recorder -- in more than 100 communities.
The 6.1-inch-square TiVo Mini provides a smaller and less-expensive option for Suddenlink subs who want multiroom DVR features. The device uses the Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) spec to deliver Internet Protocol-based video from a customer’s main Premiere DVR. It provides access to live and recorded TV, as well as video-on-demand programming.
Suddenlink is offering TiVo Mini for $6 or $7 per month, depending on location.
The operator’s initial rollout of the TiVo Mini, which began in January, now includes more than 100 Suddenlink-served communities in various states, including Cabot and Jonesboro, Ark.; Alexandria and Bossier City, La.; Branson and St. Joseph, Mo.; Muskogee and Stillwater, Okla.; Bryan-College Station and Tyler, Texas; and in various West Virginia cities.
One TiVo Mini is required for each TV set on which customers wish to access the service. The add-on devices also let viewers record TV programming in one room and watch it in another. The box includes nominal storage for buffering video but doesn't store any recordings locally, according to TiVo.
The MSO generally prices primary TiVo HD DVRs at $15 and $17 monthly, with discounts and bundled promotions available, according to a spokesman.
Suddenlink also offers TiVo Stream, which transcodes IP video and delivers it to up to four Apple iOS devices, available for $10 per month.
The St. Louis-based operator has not disclosed how many TiVo customers it has. Suddenlink first launched TiVo DVRs in December 2010 and activated multiroom DVR features -- which previously required Premiere boxes in each room -- a year later.
