Case Title: Tivo: Global Fundamentals of Branding and Advertising1. Tivo Founded in 1997 by Jim Barton and Michael Ramsay who left Silicon Graphics with the idea of ​​creating a home network that integrated all home communications, but decided to focus on television.2. They created a device that was a digital video recorder with the ability to allow users to pause live shows or rewind/forward recorded shows. It also allowed users to skip commercials, allowed3. The first Tivo shipped in March 1999. It allowed users to control what they watched and when they wanted to watch it.4. In May 2000, Brodie Keast (VP of marketing and sales) reviewed a catchy ad that showed two bigwigs throwing the network's chief programmer out of a building, which meant they were taking back control5. Tivo only penetrated 0.04% of the TV6 subscriber market. Even though 90% of people said they would recommend it, poor sales led Tivo's marketing team to believe that the product lacked awareness even though it was in retail electronics stores7. It allowed for 30 hours of programming without videotapes and automatically detected and recorded programs based on your preferences.8. The slogan was “Watch whatever you want, whenever you want”9. Two main factors: hard drive capacity and recording quality10. Instead of manufacturing the hardware, they partnered with Sony and Philips and outsourced manufacturing, distribution, and promotion to retailers11. This allowed them to focus on the true nature of the business: entertainment service.12. Tivo was marketed as a 9.95 month, 99 year, or 199 lifetime service13. Initial marketing through print advertising and the website led to some confusion about how to introduce this product14. There were some technical issues and confusion when using/navigating the unit's menus15. The challenge in marketing this product was to invite people to change their consumption habits16. 52 billion dollars were spent on prime time television advertising (8pm to 11pm)17. The season pass – the most popular feature – automatically records all episodes18. The Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down button gave users the ability to instantly rate shows, providing Tivo with user preferences so it could make suggestions and record shows based on the user's preferences19. Non-users were worried that Tivo was spying on their viewing habits and selling them.20. The networks and ad agency were concerned about Tivo's ability to shift programming (create personal TV shows) and skip commercials. Networks lose the ability to place a popular show in prime time.21. Tivo's goal has become to allow consumers to be in control at all times, and user data should remain inaccessible except in aggregate form.