Charter Communications
To convert that opportunity into sales and profits, Charter wants to offer its subscribers a better service than AT&T
The kicker to that strategy is the longstanding partnership with DVR expert TiVo
Analyst David Joyce of the ISI Group asked whether Charter was still committed to TiVo's set-top boxes, and this is what Rutledge said:
Our commitment to TiVo is a commitment to their software, actually. We have a license agreement with TiVo to use their user interface and we are using it currently on boxes they provide. But as we go forward, our strategy is to use their user interface both in the cloud and on existing CPE (or customer premises equipment) and on our new CPE.
This is manna to TiVo and its investors. The company is getting away from low-margin hardware sales with an eye to much more profitable software license deals, and Charter is doing exactly what TiVo wants here. The two companies have been working together for a long time, but this is where the rubber really hits the road.
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