Tivo V6 : Virgin Media V6 - Powered by TiVo(new STB)

[OLD BOY]

The more I read about the Horizon box, the less I like it.

http://richardbloomfield.ie/2014/01/...n-set-top-box/

I know this was written 2 years ago, but VM viewers in Ireland are very dissatisfied with it. We can only hope that the new platform resolves the problems, because this is just not good enough.

[denphone]

Well l hope we don't have something like that or else all hell will be let loose by some members on this forum one suspects.

[Horizon]

Been doing a bit of digging and have found some older articles which I am posting here as I thought it was worthwhile putting all we know about new equipment in one place.

A new router called "Connect" is on the way and it has a VM logo on it according to this article:

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2015/...w-connect-box/

Arris have been working on a 4k gateway with Liberty which looks like it will be deployed in the UK:

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2015/...ty-4k-gateway/

Arris has been working on a router too called Touchstone (different from Connect, or the same???):

http://www.broadbandtvnews.com/2015/...stone-gateway/

----

This is why I think we might get Horizon, as this article talks about Liberty's RDK software spec that its rolling out and the article makes clear that Liberty want economies of scale with regards to equipment:

http://www.multichannel.com/news/tec...t-cable/384141

Finally, a brand new news snippet from today's investor presentation has given a clue what some of Liberty's cablecos might get. No idea if it applies here, but Liberty are launching a new box called EOS with the Horizon UI (user interface) on it. The Horizon UI will get upgraded this year and Liberty are launching a cloud based service called Horizon Lite. This news snippet is from page 8 of here:

http://www.libertyglobal.com/pdf/pre...tion-FINAL.pdf

Very annoyingly, Liberty have left off the webcast off their site, so I can't listen to it. Perhaps there was actually something interesting in it for once....

---------- Post added at 21:07 ---------- Previous post was at 20:29 ----------

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

The more I read about the Horizon box, the less I like it.

http://richardbloomfield.ie/2014/01/...n-set-top-box/

I know this was written 2 years ago, but VM viewers in Ireland are very dissatisfied with it. We can only hope that the new platform resolves the problems, because this is just not good enough.

But he updated that post saying a software upgrade had occurred and it had improved things. And there have been more upgrades since then.

Perhaps someone should get on a Ryan Air flight over to Ireland, hunt down a box and see what its like.

VM Ireland and UK are one company now, so its only a matter of time until services and equipment are aligned too.

[Stephen]

That new connect router is out already. It is the Superhub 3..

[Horizon]

ahh, I should venture into the broadband section more often!

[1andrew1]

Originally Posted by Horizon

Finally, a brand new news snippet from today's investor presentation has given a clue what some of Liberty's cablecos might get. No idea if it applies here, but Liberty are launching a new box called EOS with the Horizon UI (user interface) on it. The Horizon UI will get upgraded this year and Liberty are launching a cloud based service called Horizon Lite. This news snippet is from page 8 of here:

http://www.libertyglobal.com/pdf/pre...tion-FINAL.pdf

Very annoyingly, Liberty have left off the webcast off their site, so I can't listen to it. Perhaps there was actually something interesting in it for once....

Interesting find, particularly as Tivo is not mentioned on the 2016 Product Roadmap. Though of course this could mean it's in the 2017 Roadmap.

[Horizon]

.... from the webcast, Mike Fries says this: "EOS is the project name for our cloud based set top box that we're going to be trialing later this year. It's going to be faster, cheaper and provide more functionality than today's Horizon box".

---------- Post added at 23:59 ---------- Previous post was at 23:51 ----------

Originally Posted by 1andrew1

Interesting find, particularly as Tivo is not mentioned on the 2016 Product Roadmap. Though of course this could mean it's in the 2017 Roadmap.

I'm still listening to the webcast, but my guess is now is that we won't get the Horizon box. They'll stick with tivo in the UK until they're ready to go down the cloud based route, then its goodbye stbs, well almost. They'll still need some sort of mini boxes for customers to connect to the cloud service.

---------- Post added 11-05-2016 at 01:21 ---------- Previous post was 10-05-2016 at 23:59 ----------

Just to copy my post from the other thread here too as its relevant:

That's the million dollar question, which, I think Liberty/VM has answered at the end of the webcast. EVERYONE should listen to it. I'll state the facts, then give my opinion.

Facts:

Tom Mockbridge, VM boss says this, "we are committed to the 2nd half of this year to deploy EOS in the United Kingdom. We'll put some tivo software on it, that'll give us a lot more functionality for our customers."

"We're very confident that with the tv launch/relaunch that we have coming through this year, that we'll remain very competitive with Sky."

"So far we've seen very little impact from the Sky Q which is of course a very expensive decoder and we're very focussed on improving the offer we have there and EOS is going to be a big part of that."

And to finish the webcast, another Liberty exec says, "...this new box is going to be a 4k box, a pretty high powered box that will get a refreshed tivo UI on it later this year. And then in following years our goal is to get Horizon across all of Europe and the EOS box, this new 4k box is going to be the engine for next generation for video for Liberty."


Opinion:

Mike Fries said at the beginning of the webcast that EOS is a project name for a cloud based set top box. At the end of the webcast, Tom Mockbridge states that SkyQ is a expensive decoder.

VM will NOT launch a new physical 4k box, it'll be cloud based!!

http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/1375...-take-on-sky-q

Virgin Media is soon to replace its current TiVo box as the flagship set-top-box in its TV line-up. There is a new device coming in the next few months that will also be powered by TiVo, but capable of 4K video output.

In its first quarter financial results for 2016, the company revealed that it is "preparing to launch [a] new set-top-box platform".

A spokeswoman confirmed to Pocket-lint that the box will continue the company's partnership with TiVo: "Virgin Media plans to launch a new TV set-top box later this year. It will be TiVo-based and 4K ready," she said.

[denphone]

l for one am glad that for now it will be TiVo based as l am certainly not convinced by the Horizon box by a long way and as the old saying goes its 'better the devil you know than the devil you don't' in my opinion.

[OLD BOY]

So if I get this right, the new 4K box with Tivo UI will be out later this year, and then subsequently (in a few years), the UK will have access to the new Horizon cloud based box, which starts trialling later this year.

Is this how you all read it?

http://www.digitaltveurope.net/53829...or-all-europe/

Liberty Global to create single advanced set-top for all Europe

Liberty Global is to consolidate its next-generation set-top platforms, including ultimately that of Virgin Media in the UK, as part of a project dubbed ‘Eos’ by the company.

Eos is in turn part of the wider strategic plan, formerly known as ‘Liberty 3.0’ and now, according to president and CEO Mike Fries, to be known as Liberty Go. This will see the company reduce costs across the board through, among other things, common technology platforms, and build revenue through marketing advanced services.

Speaking to analysts as Liberty Global reported strong first quarter results yesterday, Fries described Eos as “a set-top we plan to roll out everywhere at some point, including in that market [the UK]”.

Virgin Media announced yesterday that it planned to roll out a new 4K-ready box that will be based on its existing TiVo platform. Speaking on the analyst call, Liberty’s chief technology officer Balan Nair said that this would be a “pretty high-powered box that will get a refreshed TiVo UI on it later this year” but added that “our goal is to get Horizon across all of Europe” ultimately, referring to the advanced set-top platform already in use in multiple Liberty Global markets. He said that Eos would be the “engine for next generation video” for the company.

Virgin Media CEO Tom Mockridge, also on the call, said that the TiVo-based box would “give us a lot more functionality for our customers” and enable the operator to remain competitive with Sky. The latter has recently launched its own high-end box, Sky Q.

Mockridge said that Eos would be “a big part” of the company’s plan to improve its TV offering in the future.

Earlier on the call, Fries described Eos as a “project name for our cloud-based set-top box” that would be “trialing later this year” and would be “faster, cheaper and provide more functionality than today’s Horizon box”.

He said that Liberty’s new Wi-Fi router, the Connect Box, which is now available in multiple European markets, “sets us even further apart from the competition” by providing up to 1Gbps across in-home networks. “This is a big issue,” he said. “When you’ve driven average customer speeds up to 100Mbps but you don’t control the in-home WiFi router, customers complain.”

Touching on the broader Liberty Go project, Fries said that this would encompass measures to increase revenue as well as trim costs, with about 60% of the value creation coming from the revenue side. On the cost side, the company is centralising elements of its operation including product development, core network management, IT and its supply chain, including consolidation of its customer care operations.

Increasing revenue will be based on upping prices thanks to new products based on Horizon, WiFi and faster broadband speeds. The company is targeting building out to seven million new homes over three years, having added 210,000 new build homes in the first quarter.

Fries did not explain the origin of the Eos name on the call. In Greek mythology, Eos is the goddess of dawn. Coincidentally or not, it is also the name of media mogul Barry Diller’s private yacht, one of the largest three-masted rigged schooners afloat and a vessel much admired by Fries’ boss, Liberty Global chairman John Malone.

[muppetman11]

Does it come with a free Canon Camera.

[Ken W]

Originally Posted by muppetman11

Does it come with a free Canon Camera.

And a life time Free subscription to all Virgin services.

[Mad Max]

I'll believe it when i see it, coming soon.................................

[passingbat]

Originally Posted by Mad Max

I'll believe it when i see it, coming soon.................................

We all knew that the cloud was the next significant step; trying to figure out exactly when VM would make that step was the difficult bit.

I guess based on what we've gleaned (kudos to Horizon on that front), it appears that the cloud is 'Coming Sooner' than many people thought.

[Mad Max]

Originally Posted by passingbat

We all knew that the cloud was the next significant step; trying to figure out exactly when VM would make that step was the difficult bit.

I guess based on what we've gleaned (kudos to Horizon on that front), it appears that the cloud is 'Coming Sooner' than many people thought.

So will this mean that we will not have the need for a TiVo? will we just be issued with a smaller device to access "the cloud"?