Openivo: New Television

TV ads that find there own market

2011-10-26T16:49:00.000-07:00

The OpenIVO system is not software or a network, but a community. It is a single community of viewers, developers, and advertisers working together to transform and improve the television experience.

Who makes the well-worn path through the woods? Everyone who travels contributes just by walking. Similarly, the OpenIVO system could enable TV ads that find their own market.

Traditionally, marketers identify a particular demographic to target, and buy ads with tv programs with good penetrations in that market. The Openivo system would allow ad delivery to a heterogenous group, and test who watches and responds to ads and who skips them. The ads could then propagate to similar viewers to those who watched the ad, social network contacts, etc. Data could be collected and analysed in real time to develop algorithms to send the ads only to the people who are likeliest to respond. Demographic reports can then go to the advertiser identifying the market segments that are the responders.

This would have the effect both of increasing the ROI for the advertiser and showing the viewers the ads they would find most relevant and enjoyable.

A personal medical trial

2011-10-26T15:58:00.000-07:00

My work with the OpenIVO system has been on hold for several months because of a family medical emergency. My teenage son has been receiving inpatient treatment at Memorial Sloan Kettering hospital since July. It has been a long road with a lot of work yet to do. We are cautiously optimistic. I would like to sincerely thank everyone for your thoughts and prayers.

Openivo Release Roadmap

2011-05-01T08:01:00.000-07:00

Openivo v. 1.0: MythTV Wizard
A software solution to simplify the process of download, installation, and configuration of MythTV on Ubuntu. If the viewer uses tested and compatible hardware, they will walk step-by-step through the process for a rapid and trouble-free installation. The development will be open to the public, the software will be free, open source, and available for donation to the MythTV community.
Target release date: August 1, 2011

Openivo v. 2.0: Managed MythTV
An optional managed network to offer remote system monitoring with email notification for faults, remote upgrades and maintenance. Subscribers maintain a user profile with Openivo. Also offered free and open source.
Target release date: October 1, 2011

Openivo v. 3.0: The Openivo Entertainment Environment
Offer optional enhanced features with potential revenue production: App Store: Personalized medical record with referrals, home security monitoring, sponsored content, etc.
Target release date: January 1, 2012

Openivo Inception Meeting Summary

2011-05-01T06:12:00.000-07:00

Day 2: We had a productive discussion leading to clarification of the mission: To put the control of TV programming and TV advertising in the hands of the viewers. We reviewed the pain points for all the stakeholders. Relative opportunity valuation led to a focus on sponsors and viewers. Recognition that the primary concern of sponsors is reach to viewers, therefore the primary focus of the initial efforts will be on establishing a significant viewer base. Discussion of privacy and security, including threat analysis. Conclusion that building on an open source OS will provide sufficient security for the early versions.
Mission Statement: To put the control of television programming and television advertising in the hands of the viewers.
Values: Openness, Honesty, Freedom, Privacy, Security, Respect
Commitments: Open Source, Viewer-focus, Ease-of-use, Inclusiveness.
Vision: An infrastructure for a community of viewers, developers, content providers, and sponsors as equals, working together with mutual respect to fulfill the mission.

Day 3: Viewed and discussed panel discussion "Addressable advertising: Who benefits?"
https://www.itvt.com/kalturaentry/tvot2009-addressable-advertising-who-benefits-part-1
Keval Desai - Product Management Director, Google TV Ads
Jerry Dow - Chief Marketing Officer, Suddenlink Communications
Carolyn Everson - EVP of Strategy and Operations, US Ad Sales, MTV Networks
Konrad FeldmanCo-Founder and CEO, Quantcast
Seth Haberman - CEO, Visible World (moderator)
Lisa Kowitt - SVP of Advertising, Wachovia
Daniel Scheinman - SVP and General Manager, Cisco Media Solutions, Cisco Systems
Matt Seiler - Global CEO, IPG Group, Universal McCann
Yael Taqqu - Partner, McKinsey

Discussed plan for initial trial system, including choosing and purchasing hardware, recruiting viewer participants for initial testing in one area in Cleveland, etc. This would lead to the easiest and lowest cost for viewer participants.

Day 4
1. Recognition and discussion of the problem that there would be minimal revenue available until there was a large installed base. Solution: Change the plan for roll-out to be as low-cost as possible. Plan for zero revenue until a significant user base is achieved.
Discussion of v.1.0 system: Software only. Includes a simplified installation of MythTV software with network management (power and functional monitoring, email notification for system problems)

Day 5 Final Day
We reviewed data on the adoption of KnoppMyth/LinHES, a simplified appliance version of MythTV.
I tried to get a very rough idea of how many KnoppMyth/LinHES users there were and how long it took to develop this base. A review of the subscription dates of the members of their forum showed the following data:
2004 1817
2005 2465
2006 15712
2007 7428
2008 82
2009 297
2010 234
2011 59
We were encouraged by the size of the group of early adopters, but puzzled by the large drop-off after year 2007. To get some idea, we did a practice installation of LinHES. Download of software took 2.5 hours. The installation procedure was awkward and difficult. Required 4 hours, with incomplete functionality. Our conclusion was that the Openivo 1.0 version did not need network management to provide significant differentiation. MythTV with a simplified installation and configuration procedure would be a significant advance.

Openivo inception meeting - Day One

2011-04-21T05:19:00.000-07:00

We had a great day on the boat yesterday.
Participants:

Project Owner: Marc Allan Feldman, Virtual Entrepreneur, Advanced Advertising/SocialTV
http://about.me/marcallanfeldman

Facilitator: Brian Levy
http://www.leandog.com/who-we-are/team/herding-dogs/brian-levy/

Agile Apprentice: Ben Woznicki
http://www.leandog.com/who-we-are/team/sporting-dogs/ben-woznicki/

Agile Strategist: Doc Norton
http://www.leandog.com/who-we-are/team/herding-dogs/michael-doc-norton/

Consultant: Brad Templeton
Open source software architect, civil rights advocate and entrepreneur.
You can see an relevant essay by Brad at http://www.templetons.com/brad/tvfuture.html
You can also see an excellent lecture Brad gave on the topic of the Future of Computer Security at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8QuUEwrKm8

Consultant: Jason Stradley
Visionary security executive, US & Canada Security Practice Lead at BT Global Services
Jason has more 25 years of experience and leadership in providing solutions for complex enterprise environments in the following areas; Multi-platform, Multi-protocol network architecture, design and implementation, information protection and network security.
Jason gave a nice presentation on "Endpoint Security Management: Trust but Verify" available at
http://www.brighttalk.com/webcast/24159

Consultant: Sid Good
Strategic planning and new product development, Good Marketing, Inc.
http://www.thekidexperts.com/about.html

The agenda for the week:

Charting:
o Purpose- We establish the purpose, benefits, goals and metrics for the project
o Strategy- We discuss our overall strategy for execution including timelines and team composition
o Tactics- We lay out a plan for the execution including roles, working agreements, regular meetings and intended cadence
Discovering:
o Comprehension- We will quickly and collaboratively improve our understanding of the product content and the solution we intend to deliver
o Creation- Artifacts of discovery include product goals and metrics, lightweight personas, a user story map, a release roadmap and wireframes
Planning:
o Refinement- We delve into those deliverable items that will comprise the next few weeks of work, discussing details of the design and acceptance criteria
o Commitment- We discuss the work before us and commit to deliver during the next work cycle

Today we reviewed an outline of the Agile process. Discussed the current stakeholders and their pain points. This included:

Television viewers
Sponsors
Ad agencies
Cable/Satellite providers
Broadcast Networks
Developers

We weighted the relative opportunities with each group. The consensus was to focus on the needs of viewers and sponsors.

I look forward to press on today with discussion on how to prioritize the features of a minimally marketable system to meet the needs of the stakeholders.

Draft summary for Request for Proposal

2011-03-27T10:03:00.000-07:00

OPENIVO - A PC-enhanced environment for a community of television viewers

A managed network for HTPCs providing premium intelligent DVR service, SocialTV, and t-commerce in a system free to the viewer, financed with inserted, skip-able addressable TV commercials.

I have:
A vision
Published patent claims
A broad system design
A commitment to Open Source software
$80,000 in seed capital
$400,000 available for first round funding

I am looking for a partner to help turn the concept into a product, and the product into a community.

Broad system design:

Server (Cloud infrastructure):
1. Network Management (eg. OpenNMS) To include Network Monitoring (fault management), remote configuration , usage monitoring (accounting), performance management and security and privacy management for the client home HTPCs.
2. Interest-based advertising engine - Ad Server (CMS, eg. Drupal). Develop and maintain viewer profiles. Maintain ad database. Serve insertable TV ads based on the viewer profile.
3. Advertising analytics. Gather data on ads watched, ads skipped, ads replayed. Update user profiles. Provide marketing data.
4. TV ad auction module. (eg. phpAuction.org, or contract with Google TV ads). Automated advertising inventory management and timeslot auction.

Client (HTPC)
1. Client DVR/media center. (eg. MythTV/MediaPortal) to include SocialTV (Facebook API), Intelligent recommendation engine with automatic recording, Movie streaming (Amazon Instant), Hulu
2. Addressable ad insertion client module (modified MythCommFlag, video file editor)
3. T-commerce (amazon)

IP: Home computers subsidized with targeted television advertising.
COMPUTER-COST SUBSIDIZING METHOD United States Patent Application 20100058378
See it at: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/y2010/0058378.html

Because the system will be based on open source with a plug-in architecture, I don't think it is necessary to design big. An alpha system would include minimally marketable features of PVR functionality with an excellent UI, and remote network management for installation, configuration, maintenance, and monitoring.

What is Openivo? (Google Presentation)

2010-12-27T14:07:00.000-08:00

I am working on a presentation to better illustrate what the Openivo system is. Check it out:

Let me know what you think.

Turning an idea into a business.

2010-12-20T08:51:00.000-08:00

It is easy to clearly see the Moon; It is relatively difficult to get there.

Vision can only take you so far.

This post is in response to Robert Clark in our LinkedIn group OPENIVO New Television, who wrote:

How, when, where and with whom (your partners) do you intend to demonstrate this and show proof-of-concept?
And if you have a business case, model and plan then you need to vet it with somebody/entities. . The competition's overwhelming. . . When and how does it become a business?

My motivation for forming the group was to try to answer a more basic question. Could this become a business? Media center PCs have been around for years, managed networks have been around for decades. Many large corporations have been trying to implement addressable advertising. Is it possible that a managed network of media center PCs could provide the infrastructure for a TV entertainment environment that would be technologically feasible, market feasible, and highly desirable to viewers? When I spoke one-on-one with industry experts, the answer was usually no, but the reasons were always issues outside their area of expertise. The software experts think the legal issues insurmountable, the lawyers question whether advertisers would participate, marketers question whether the software was feasible, etc. Looking at how this group has grown and the level of talent and accomplishment of those interested enough to join and listen, tells me the business at least has potential.

The concept has viability. The next step is not a business plan. The next steps are to elucidate the concept and form a core team. My next plans are:

1. A powerpoint presentation outlining the details of a draft system
2. A web site to focus on the concept and assist with team building
3. Completion of the design of a proof-of-concept system.

I expect to ask for volunteers from the group to be beta-testers for the system. I will definitely have the system ready for testing by February 1. I don’t know yet if it will be February 1, 2011 or February 1, 2012.

Do-it-yourself TV ads

2010-12-15T02:45:00.000-08:00

The Openivo system allows the auction of an unlimited inventory of available TV ads. The system allows targeting on any demographic or interest basis. Targeting can also be done on a local basis down to the household, or even to the individual in the household, like an email.
Would the availability of TV ads to a huge number of local advertisers require an army of ad agents and creative? Could acceptable ads be created by small business advertisers? Before the typewriter, printing had to be done by professional typesetters. Now very professional documents can be created (and spelling and grammar checked) using software.

Software is now available for the individual production of TV ads. I was asked by friends in the Libertarian Party to run for Attorney General for the state of Ohio. No, I am not a lawyer, but I was intrigued by the adventure. I had a very limited budget. I made the attached TV ad myself for about $150 using Spotmixer. It took about 1 hour with voiceover by me. I bought TV ad slots through the auction system at Google TV ads. Google does not yet have a system for geographic targeting. You can target by network. One of the broadcast networks carried by Google is SportsTimeOhioHD on DISH. I ran 100 spots over one week on Sportstime Ohio HD. I bought the spots by auction on Google TV ads for $1.70 each. I received about 100,000 views according to the Google report. What do you think? It only received 450 views on YouTube.

Imagine the increase in revenue when small businesses can afford TV advertising to their local areas.

The file is easier than the stream

2010-12-14T21:36:00.000-08:00

In our LinkedIn discussion group, Robert Clark wrote:

"Probably the most underestimated and complex aspect of your capability is advertising insertion. In fact OTT Video/Internet TV providers are woefully behind the Pay-TV and Broadcast sectors who have developed advertising and digital program insertion capabilities over decades"

Robert is an experienced broadband, telecom, and video specialist. I feel fortunate to have him participating and I appreciate his comments. The answer to this issue lies in the difference between the way a TV set or a standard cable box handles video, and the way a computer handles video.

To a TV set or cable box, video comes through as a real-time stream. Whether it is an analog signal or a series of digital ones and zeros, it is the change in the signal over time that carries the information. To insert a targeted advertisement into a stream, you have to essentially switch from one stream of data, to a second stream, then switch back in real time. This is complicated in a system designed to carry one stream at a time.

For a computer, video is a file, a collection of data abstracted from real time. To the computer a video file is not so different from a word document or a spreadsheet. The video file can be easily cut, copied, pasted, and saved. This is much easier than with a real-time stream of information. Even “live” TV is not really live. With a computer PVR, the video signal is saved as a file to the hard drive, and the file from the hard drive is displayed to the TV. The delay may be only one second. This is what allows the magic of pausing live TV. The file reading is simply paused while the video signal continues to be written to the hard drive.

One interesting ramification is that advertising insertion can be implemented to a software package like Windows Media Center, without changing the media center software at all. If you have access to the saved video files on the local hard disc, ads can be edited into the files and Windows Media Center will play them as if they were originally recorded that way.

I am sure that I am oversimplifying, and hopefully our software experts here can correct me. I have read an acronym SMOP (Simply a Matter of Programming) when a concept sounds easy but takes many hours of work for someone to do it in a smooth and professional way.

Ad detection and flagging software is already available for current media center programs. I am most familiar with the open source mythcommflag program for MythTV. These programs use features like the brief presence of an all-black screen to signal the start of an advertising break. They are used to facilitate ad skipping and editing ads out. The same technology can be used to mark spots for interest-based ads to be edited in.

Robert is correct that ad insertion technology is a major challenge to satellite and cable MSOs. To a system based on a managed network of HTPCs, however, it should be relatively easy. It may be similar to the differenceibetween trying to alter a traditional film photograph compared to using photoshop programs on a digital picture file.

Because the same technology of file editing is used, advertising video files can be downloaded via the internet and inserted to addressable target files in the same way whether those video program files come from cable, satellite, or free over-the-air.

It does not require a large desktop computer. I am running Windows 7 Media Center on an Acer Aspire Revo r3610, which is about the size of a paperback book.

Conventional and unconventional wisdom

2010-12-13T23:44:00.000-08:00

The OPENIVO concept may be difficult to understand as it goes against several established paradigms. This presents challenges, but also opportunities.

Conventional wisdom:
Ad-supported free television is dead.
Improve TV by making it more interactive.
DVRs are used mainly to avoid commercials
TV must be enhanced by adding web content.
Connecting a TV to a computer is complicated.
Having a TV connected to a computer makes it more difficult to use.

Unconventional wisdom:
You can connect a computer to the TV to organize, simplify, and improve the viewing experience. A computer can make the TV a better storyteller, without requiring interactivity.
Addressable advertising would not only be acceptable, but highly desirable to the viewer if:
1. All ads are skip-able. Watching the ad is under the control of the viewer.
2. Ads are well done and targeted to be of entertainment value and interest to the viewer.
3. The viewer knows that their private information is secure and will not be abused.
4. They are getting significant value for sharing their private data.

People will watch and enjoy commercials if they are good and relevant to the viewer. Targeted advertising will make the system free to the viewer.

Who should control the TV advertising dollar?

2010-12-12T05:46:00.000-08:00

Addressable advertising should be very valuable. It gives ability to sell the same 30 second spot to many different advertisers, to focus on their specific audiences. It should be more efficient and effective by appropriate targeting. With TiVo, tru2way, and other technologies, set-top boxes are achieving the necessary sophistication of hardware and software.

A larger problem is the market issue. Most advertising inventory is owned, controlled, and sold, by the programming networks. Addressable advertising is delivered through the infrastructure of the cable and satellite MSOs. The networks do not want to lose control of their inventory. The MSOs don't want to give up control of their infrastructure. Canoe Ventures is trying to negotiate to achieve progress in this space.

I believe that TV advertising dollars should be controlled by the group with the most power and the deepest pockets, the group with the most intelligence, who knows what the viewers want and has the viewers best interests at heart. I am talking about the viewers themselves. When all ads are skip-able and programs are time-shifted and locally recorded, the power and control of programming and advertising are in the hands of the viewers.

Why your set-top box should be a PC

2010-12-09T02:19:00.000-08:00

40 years ago, if I wanted to communicate with you in a professional way, I would type a letter on an electric typewriter, an analog device. 30 years ago I could use a document preparation system (aka word processing machine) like a Lexitron. It was an electric typewriter with a floppy disc memory. This was a great advance and very popular, since it allowed editing without correcting fluid or retyping a whole document. A bigger advance came a decade later with the introduction of the personal computer with word processing in software. New functionality like unlimited templates, spell and grammar checking became possible. No one would think of using a Lexitron today.
Todays cable boxes and DVRs are essentially TV Lexitrons, limited functionality TV processing machines. A big advance will come when this is all done in software on a personal computer. Improved intelligent automatic recording, Social TV, and unlimited accessory apps. (Switch to a webcam when someone rings the doorbell? Show a map where all the kids cellphone gps locate them?)

Many companies are coming out with limited functionality devices to interface TV with internet in some way. It is time to use a real PC and do it in software.There are many advantages to this business model. No need for research and development of proprietary hardware - the PC is industry-standard. No need to install or service hardware, outsource to the manufacturer. No need to carry boxes in inventory. There is a reason that Cable companies don't sell TV sets.

This also changes the work environment for developers. Programmers can concentrate on coming up with cool features and apps. No need to worry about convincing a retail hardware manufacturer that it is a good idea or that it will generate revenue. Dramatically decreases development time. The network is the thing, and it runs on software.

Almost 99% of video is still watched on the TV, and the fastest growth is time-shifted.

2010-12-07T05:06:00.000-08:00

This is more evidence that a free, addressable advertising supported DVR network would be embraced by the general U.S. public.

What Consumers Watch: Nielsen’s Q1 2010 Three Screen Report | Nielsen Wire

Why is a physician so engaged in advanced advertising?

2010-12-06T19:17:00.000-08:00

I have always loved television. I must have watched 6-8 hours per day. My mother claimed as a small toddler, I would play with the TV in the background, and pay close attention during the commercials.

I developed a passion for computers. My high school had a teletype machine which served as a terminal. In 1976, I wrote a program in BASIC which automated the student college financial aid application form. I had a commodore64 when they first came out.

I had the benefit of a liberal arts education as a philosophy major at NU.

I attended the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, I got involved in early online medical education with an experimental system there. I was also exposed and interested in quantitative methods in public health. I did biological research at the NIH in Bethesda, close to my home. I became interested in motivation, human behavior, and knowledge. One of my favorite professors was a pathologist, a world expert in lung cancer. He was also a chain smoker. He died of lung cancer during my residency.

I did a residency and fellowship training in anesthesiology, with a subspecialty interest in anesthesia for neurosurgery and neuro intensive care. In 1989, at age 29, I was asked to become the section head of anesthesiology at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins. I learned that if a field is sufficiently circumscribed, one can become a recognized expert very quickly. This was at a time of great upheaval in health care, with DRGs and health reform on the agenda.

My interest in the business of public health led me to get a Masters degree in health finance and management, from the Department of Health Policy and Management at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health (now Bloomberg school). I worked part-time as a hospital management consultant with Arthur Andersen.

This was also the time I got involved with a large research project, the Study of Medical Testing for Cataract Surgery. This was a prospective randomized study of 19,000 patients to determine if ECGs and blood testing made any difference to the outcomes of cataract surgery. I was the Site Principal Investigator at Hopkins. This gave me a great experience in the gathering, analysis, and use of large data sets. This was also the time of the Flecainide studies. Flecainide was a pill that prevented arrythmias after heart attack. Several studies proved it was effective at preventing dangerous irregular heartbeats. It got FDA approval. Only later, with large studies and data analysis, was it found that although the drug was good at preventing irregular heart beats, patients who took the drug had twice the death rate, from many causes. This taught me that truth is not found in things that make sense theoretically, but that important decisions should be based on evidence from good, direct, empirical data.

I was recruited to the Cleveland Clinic to lead anesthesia at the new Cole Eye Institute. As our boys got a little older, I found more time for hobbies. I loved TiVo, but I did not like monthly fees. I did not want to pay for multiple systems in the house. I had several computers that I was not using. I upgraded them and installed software to act as media center PCs.

I read about addressable, or targeted TV advertising. I understood the great business advantages. I understood how it could make for more enjoyable television. I also understood the hardware, market, and privacy challenges that were obstacles to implementation. My experience with the hospital workstations showed me that a secure, private, and useful network was possible. At this time I also became interested in Libertarian political philosophy, the power of free decision-making. It occurred to me that a network of home theater PCs, like I had already built, would make an excellent platform for addressable ads, solving the hardware, market, and privacy challenges.

New Patent Claims Published

2010-03-04T08:12:00.000-08:00

Patent claims published today.
Home computers subsidized with targeted television advertising.
COMPUTER-COST SUBSIDIZING METHOD United States Patent Application 20100058378
See it at: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/y2010/0058378.html

It's Software as a Service

2009-11-06T05:55:00.000-08:00

The vision of Openivo is not to sell a hardware box, but rather to offer a managed network of dvr services. Let the subscribers purchase compatible hardware, and the Openivo service will automatically configure and maintain the software as a service system.

Characteristics of SaaS software include:
* network-based commercially available software
* managed from central locations rather than at each customer's site
* application delivery in a one-to-many model (including architecture, pricing, partnering, and management characteristics
* centralized feature updating
* frequent integration into a larger communicating network

Openivo at Future TV Show 2009

2009-01-09T01:53:00.000-08:00

Future TV Show 2009

Now in its 3rd year, the Future TV Show brings together North Americas most exclusive gathering of TV executives to discuss the ever evolving multi-platform world and how this is set to impact the future of the TV business. Join us in New York City and take part in a conference program that features cutting edge case studies and multiple panel discussions on the industries hottest issues

Openivo: A managed network of set-top FOSS pcs running dvr software as a platform for directed advertising and e-commerce.

I will be representing Openivo, Inc. as a delegate to the conference, January 21-22.

_________________
Marc Allan Feldman
Director
Openivo, Inc.
Beachwood, OH
USA
marc(at)openivo.com
[url]www.openivo.com[/url]

Openivo: a managed network of MythTV PCs

2009-01-08T03:33:00.000-08:00

A significant cost of consumer goods and services is marketing.
1. The cost of gathering information about your customers
2. The cost of getting information about your products and services to the customer.
The more accurate and reliable the information, the better return on investment for the seller, and the more value for the buyer.

The value of delivery of marketing information has been the primary method of financing television programming, through television commercials. Cable and satellite providers have found that most viewers are also willing to pay additional costs for improved reception and a wider variety of programming.

The set-top box has been identified as an excellent source of marketing information. Information for the seller (viewer demographics, interests, etc.) and information for the viewer, in the form of targeted or addressable advertising. Several different systems are in various stages of implementation to use set-top box data to target tv commercials to particular geographic and demographic market segments.

If the set-top box is owned by the viewer, and if the box is such a valuable source and transmitter of marketing data, how can that value be captured by the viewer, instead of the satellite, cable, or TV network?

The Openivo system is a managed network of internet-connected personal computers with TV tuners running DVR software. The DVR control data (shows watched, shows recorded, commercials watched, skipped, etc.) would be uploaded to the network via the internet connection. No personally identifiable information (PII) would be collected. The data would be analyzed and commercial video files would be downloaded to the set-top PC. Extra commercials targeted to the needs and interests of the viewer would be added to the usual commercial breaks. These commercials could also be skipped/FFWed, but many viewers will prefer to watch them, since they are tailored to their particular interests.

The marketing value to the advertisers should be in the range of $200 to $500 per year per subscriber. This should be enough to completely finance the hardware, software, and monthly service with no fees to the subscriber. In fact, a monthly rebate should be available to the subscriber

A free computer-DVR and free DVR service in return for access to marketing data and some extra skip-able commercials. Is it possible to give away that much value and run a large computing service on marketing and advertising? Think Google.

Of course, Openivo could not just have a giveaway of millions of dollars of computers. A plan with an initial fee for the cost of the hardware, with a rebate on installation and monthly rebate with use would be better.

By participating in this forum I hope:

1. To bounce my ideas off a bunch of smart people.

2. To find at least one skilled developer who shares the vision and is willing to devote time and energy to a cool project for some cash and possible equity in a new venture, all consistent with the GPL.

Marc

Marc Allan Feldman
Director and Owner
Openivo, Inc.
openivo is online now Report Post Edit/Delete Message

Amazon Web Services Start-up Entry

2008-11-17T06:14:00.000-08:00

Thank you for entering the 2008 AWS Start-Up Challenge. We were flooded with great applications and were impressed by your innovative business ideas and diverse uses of AWS. We have carefully selected seven finalists with promising businesses built on top of AWS. These start-ups will compete in the final judging round for the grand prize. Read more about the finalists.

You will be receiving a $25 service credit which will be placed on your AWS account during the next billing run.

We truly want you to succeed. Please check out the co-marketing opportunities which include submitting your solution to the AWS Solutions Catalog.

Best regards,

Tracy Laxdal
Amazon Web Services

.............................................................................

I thought we had a strong entry. It seemed that all the finalists had products and services that were already up and running. Below is our entry:

* Provide a summary of your idea, application, product or service:

OPENIVO New Television: A PC - Digital Video Recorder Application (PC-DVR) with Targeted Advertising Delivery System

A managed network of television set-top personal computers with TV tuners with output to the analog or digital television screen

• Connected to internet

• Running digital video recorder (DVR) software

• Subsidized with targeted advertising and e-commerce tie-ins to make the system inexpensive to purchase and free of monthly fees for service.

This is a black box, like a signal converter box, that sits on top of the television, allowing the user to pause live TV, record programs from an on-screen guide and fast-forward through programming and commercials.

The internet connection also enables the box to:

• provide video-on-demand,

• shop for merchandise,

• read and post reviews of merchandise, and

• view commercials directed to the user based on their previous known television watching, searching, and shopping experiences.

* Describe what stage you are at in your design/development process:

The basic design of the system has been described. Provisional patent claims have been filed. Several hardware prototypes have been built and function well with digital video recorder functionality for purposes of demonstration. The software and interfaces for Amazon Web Services are in an early stage of design and development.

* How have you incorporated Amazon Web Services as part of your solution/application? What services used and how?

There are three core functions of the system, DVR, targeted advertising, and e-commerce. AWS provides the server architecture for the system.

DVR services function locally at the PC to record TV programs to the hard drive. DVR data such as shows watched, shows recorded, ads watched, and ads skipped will be uploaded through to AWS. Simple DB is used to index uploaded user information. The DVR software allows the viewer to access the on-screen electronic program guide (EPG) and to search for programs based on title, genre, etc.

Ads can be targeted to the viewer determined by a profile based on the uploaded DVR data. The system can be personalized for each viewer in the household. Various widgets (weather, stock market, Disney channel line-up, etc) favorite channels, and preferences would be personalized. This would allow collection of viewing data by household member. Although highly detailed personal marketing data would be available, personal identity information would be highly secured, protected, and remain private. EC2 is used to query the Simple DB database to analyze DVR data, assign users to profile categories, and calculate which commercials to send. Queries will be run quickly in real time to control targeted advertising. S3 will be used to store commercial video files and other downloadable video. Targeted ads can be skipped by using a different remote control keystroke. A plus or a minus response would be required to skip the commercial. Plus means the viewer likes the commercial, but does not want to watch it now. Minus means the viewer dislikes the commercial and never wants to see it. Commercials could be easily test-marketed. Commercials with high minus ratings would be withheld from wide distribution. The goal would be to make the viewer experience of targeted commercials similar to watching the commercials on the Super Bowl. These commercials should entertain, inform, and be desirable for the viewer.

The Openivo set-top PC-DVR functions as a platform for e-commerce. If an item on a targeted ad appears interesting, a keystroke on the remote can get additional information and user reviews. If this is satisfactory, then another remote keystroke can buy the product. Two or three weeks later, the system can prompt the user to enter a brief review of the product. One marketing model would be to sell the system for $299 with a monthly $10 rebate for two years. The rebate would be financed with advertising revenue. The online account would make it easy and well motivated for the viewer to use e-commerce. FPS would handle e-commerce charges. Associates Web service would handle Amazon products sales. Fulfillment Service for e-commerce products and for Openivo boxes.

SQS handles messaging between central servers reliably. The queue service allows data processing and analysis to occur at the same time as DVR unit control without loss of messages or bottlenecks. SQS will help provide decoupling within the application. For example, data from the set-top box will be sent via SQS and processed on-demand within EC2. This will help offload processing in a robust way. This fast, reliable, fault-tolerant system is key to the functioning of the system. When a TV viewer turns the set on, the expectation is that the set will work 99.9% of the time

Mechanical Turk could be very useful for analyzing and categorizing ad video. Normally there is no available electronic program guide data for commercial messages. In order to analyze DVR control data for non-targeted ads, the commercials will have to be manually analyzed. This would not need to be done in real time, but could be added to the database later.

* What was your inspiration or what problem is being addressed with this application?

I remember when watching television was a wonderful experience. Now television has too many commercials, and programs I like are never on when I want to watch. The DVR has changed this. Now I watch what I want when I want. I have been building PC-DVRs for home use for several years. I like the fact that there is no monthly fee. I have been impressed by the constantly decreasing cost of hardware. When I first heard that the over-the-air analog signals were going to be discontinued, it occurred to me that a PC-DVR would be an excellent solution. When I first read of the development of targeted advertising, the pieces all fit together. Give away DVR services in return for advertising access. DVR software with targeted advertising would be the killer application that puts set-top PCs in the majority of American homes. This new platform would transform the television viewing experience. It would usher in the era of Personal TV. Control of advertising and programming would no longer be in the hands of a Cable MSO or a Network executive, but would be held in the hand of the TV viewer.

* Who is your target customer/ user and what is the potential market size?

Analog over-the-air viewers. These customers watch free commercial broadcast television over-the-air with “rabbit ears” or roof antennae. On February 17, 2009, all over-the-air analog signals will be discontinued. All of these people are forced to buy some kind of signal converter box to connect to their old TV set, or they will have no reception. The Openivo box is an alternative to the converter box and gives much more functionality.
Analog cable viewers. These customers are cable subscribers, but use no set-top box. For the near future, the analog signal on cable will be maintained, so they do not need to buy a converter box. Although they are not being forced to buy a box, once they see the added DVR functionality (pause live TV, one-click recording, fast-forward, etc.) the expected demand will be high.
Home theater viewers. A home theater typically includes a color TV 25 inches or larger, an audio-video receiver with surround sound, four or more speakers and components. These customers already have digital cable or satellite and may have DVRs installed either from a TiVo subscription or from their cable or satellite provider. They will be enticed by higher quality video and larger capacity machines at lower prices without monthly fees. Although the initial cost for equipment would be much higher, the revenue from directed advertising and e-commerce from this group with considerable disposable income would be lucrative.

Size

It is estimated that there are 10-20 million analog OTA viewers. They have an average of 2.6 TV sets per home.

There are an additional 50-70 million analog cable viewers. They probably have the same or more TV sets per household.

According to CEA consumer surveys, from 2000 to 2005, the percent of homes with home theater systems jumped from 21% to 33%. This would be in the range of 25 to 35 million households.

* List key competitors of your idea, application or service and how your idea is different?

1. Set-top Boxes. Apple and Microsoft each have set-top boxes, but these are media extenders and do not have DVR functionality.

2. DVR services. The closest competitor would be TiVo. TiVo provides DVR services and user control of television. TiVo has also initiated a T-commerce system called “Product Purchase” with Amazon.com. Openivo is different because it is not a proprietary set-top appliance. It is a true PC with open systems that already allow streaming Netflix videos and many other third party applications. Unlike TiVo, the cost of Openivo would be heavily subsidized by its patent pending targeted advertising system. Because TiVo charges a monthly fee for its service, extra advertising would also be considered unacceptable. Cable TV providers also supply DVR services. The service is very similar to TiVo above, but is considered lower quality.

3. PC-DVR software. Numerous software packages provide DVR functionality for personal computers. Three are available with no extra cost. Microsoft Vista Media Center is part of the operating system. Yahoo offers Yahoo Go for TV. There is an open-source option, MythTV for Linux. None is user-friendly for set-up and use. None is as controllable and expandable as the commercial packages. BeyondTV and SageTV are two popular software packages. Recently, TiVo has collaborated with Nero to offer its branded interface as a software package for PC.

4. Targeted Advertising. Although the concept is relatively new, the large potential revenue has attracted several large and small entrants. Navic Networks, which concentrates on Cable set-top systems, was recently purchased by Microsoft. Google TV Ads, which has a contract with Echostar and NBC Universal, has been marketing heavily. Smaller entrants include BlackArrow, Invidi technologies, and Canoe Ventures, a joint effort by Comcast Corp., Time Warner Cable, Cablevision Systems, Charter Communications, Cox Communications, and Bright House Networks

The five-part synergy of non-proprietary PC architecture, DVR services, targeted advertising, e-commerce, and Amazon Web Services infrastructure offers several competitive advantages.

A patent pending system for cost subsidy with targeted advertising allows selling the system for low or no cost, to capture market share.

A rich and flexible DVR/Media center implementation and development environment.

An open architecture to allow third party applications, such as Personal Pay-Per-View, a monetized higher definition form of YouTube, where user uploaded video could be sold to other users. Confidential video mailboxes could be used for downloading adult-oriented material. A wide user installed base would be an excellent channel for third-party development. This is not available in any of the other proprietary systems.

An enhanced and transformative user experience to usher in the era of Personal TV to all viewers, digital, analog, cable, satellite, and over-the-air.

* List names and brief bios of key team members:

Marc Allan Feldman MD MHS is the founder and director of Openivo, Inc.

Marc received his Bachelor’s in Philosophy from Northwestern University, an MD from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and a Master’s degree in Health Finance and Management from the Bloomberg School of Public Health at the Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Feldman was the site Principle Investigator in the Study of Medical Testing for Cataract Surgery, a study of over 19,000 surgical procedures at 10 sites in the US and Canada. After 11 years on faculty at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Feldman now is the head of anesthesia for the Cole Eye Institute at the Cleveland Clinic.

Jeffrey Rice is a founder and CEO of Direct Thought. Jeff has over 20 years of experience with innovative software technologies. He has taught classes worldwide on Java, software development, and UNIX and has presented at Java conferences in the US and Australia. Jeff has co-authored two books on Java for McGraw-Hill and was the series editor for their Java Masters Series. He has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Engineering Science from Penn State University and a Masters of Science in Mathematics from Syracuse University

David Kavanagh is a software consultant for Direct Thought in Upstate New York. He has been designing and developing software for 15 years. For the past year, his focus has been on leveraging Amazon Web Services. He is the author of the open source typica library, which provides a Java interface for an expanding set of Amazon Web Services and has been developing AWS-based applications for a variety of customers.

Morgan Paul is a software engineer with 25 years of experience in aircraft avionics software and Computer Based Training and simulation software. He has also worked for several years with a compiler company developing User Interface features and debugger functionality. Over the last three years, he has been developing functionality plug-ins and theme skins for SageTV implemented in Java, C++, and SageTV Studio code including a rehost and overhaul of NetFlix for SageMC. He has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Science from the University of South Florida.

The Openivo Project

2008-09-07T12:10:00.000-07:00

Why is it that only 40% of Americans have broadband internet, but 98% have a television? Is it because internet gives you knowledge and power and television gets you to buy stuff you don't need?

I grew up on television. I always loved it. I have cable, and satellite, and for a birthday present, my wife let me put a directional antenna on the roof for OTA HD.

My first DVR was a DirecTivo. A DVR device takes the television signal and records it, so you can pause live TV, record shows, and fast forward through programming. Absolutely fantastic. Unfortunately, I have a personal problem with monthly fees. The other six TVs in the house only received analog cable. I figured it would be cheaper and better in the long run to buy some desktop PCs with output to the TV screen and run DVR software. I set up a Panasonic HD projector in my office upstairs. When Netflix started the "watch it now" feature, I found I could get near DVD quality on a 100-inch screen with no extra fees.

My parents still don't get cable TV. Many people do not want to pay for something that they have been getting free for years and years.

I heard the announcement of the end of over-the-air analog signals. Everyone with an older set would need to buy converter boxes or they would have no signal. So I thought, if you have to put a box on top of your set, why not get a DVR? The cost of computers has been coming down steadily. To process digital signals and output to SDTV does not take a lot of computing power.

If the DVRs were in a managed network, new directed advertising (like Google TV ads, or Navic system) could subsidize the cost, to make the PC-DVR cheap or virtually free.

I would like to post here my successes and failures as Openivo, Inc. attempts to set up a system to bring the controlled, interactive television experience to the public.