I'm smart enough to know not to get my news from The Daily Show. But this week, during one of his semi-regular rants, comedian Lewis Black pointed out the absurdity of CBS
He's right, of course. What's next? Will GE
Maybe. It's enough to say that TV execs have gone loony. I blame TiVo
But there's a difference between creative and ludicrous. Seriously, I'm quitting TV altogether if millionheiress Paris Hilton parlays her starring role in TheSimple Life into a talkie ad on a box of Quaker Instant Oatmeal. ("It's soooooooo easy to watch!")
More reasonable to me is CBS' plan to transform Grand Central Station billboards into TV sampling platters. On Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported that the network would, in September, mix posters with Bluetooth technology that will allow passersby to download clips of fall programs to wireless devices. Featured shows will include Shark, Smith, Jericho, The Class, and CSI.
It's a novel approach, to be sure. But even if it helps CBS, I doubt it will do much of anything for advertisers. Instead, viewers will continue to TiVo new episodes and zap the ads at their leisure.
And that brings me back to the DVR pioneer. Between a stunning court victory over EchoStar
Don't touch that dial. Related Foolishness awaits:
- Watch how TiVo ARMs itself.
- Can the DVR pioneer escape a full Nielsen?
- Find out how TiVo won.
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Fool contributor Tim Beyers still pines for TiVo in his family room, but has yet to own stock in TiVo or any of the other companies mentioned in this story. Get the skinny on all the stocks in Tim's portfolio by checking his Fool profile . The Motley Fool's disclosure policy is always on the up-and-up.