Today TiVo announced a new feature called Swivel Search1. From the press release:
“Swivel Search, which provides broadband-connected TiVo subscribers the power to quickly find programming. [In addition to using] a title or keyword, with universal Swivel Search TiVo subscribers can also search using the way they intuitively think about television; that is, by starting with a program they currently enjoy and using elements of that program to find more of what they like. Universal Swivel Search allows viewers to seamlessly link from descriptions of one program to all others that have common elements, including program name, actors, or suggestions based on other viewers’ feedback. Additionally, users can find programs related to a specific subject with ‘tags,’ which are topic-related terms that might not be included in the program’s title or episode description, but fall under an over-arching subject of interest.”
TiVo’s search was already magnitudes better than current cable/satellite PVRs, and now it’s magnitudes better than it already was. As I’ve said before, TiVo pairing with a cable and/or satellite provider would be a killer app. Unfortunately, thanks partly to a lack of competition, and the current offerings being “good enough3“, there isn’t much impetus to make that happen.
Personally, I can’t wait to get this update and try it out. Even if it means my backlog of shows to watch will spiral even further out of control.
1 Click View Demos to see it in action2.
2 See also.
3 Most people just don’t know there’s something better out there, while others don’t want to pay a premium.