Is the country's most popular verb in home entertainment about to become an ambitious export, too? A report over the weekend in Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun indicated that TiVo
TiVo has endured a troubling spell during which the company suffered through an executive shuffle and lost its partnership with DirecTV
Now the scuttlebutt is that Japan is waiting in the wings come 2006. Tivo's Japanese site is up and running, but there's not much there right now -- and its copyright is dated 2003. But more importantly, investors need to be realistic. Japan is the home of consumer electronics. From Sony
Stateside, TiVo commands just one of every three digital video recorders. However, TiVo's brand -- and its patent-rich software applications -- shouldn't be dismissed, either. It's why the company struck up the deal with Comcast last week. That's why it's encouraging to see that the story indicates that TiVo isn't likely to go it alone in the fiercely competitive country, but rather team up with local companies. That is TiVo's best shot. Exporting the brand -- not as a box maker but as a software licensing specialist -- is TiVo's brilliant new strategy.
That's the TiVo that the rest of the world is about to see -- or so investors hope.
Some recent TiVo tidbits:
- The $99 price point should be enough to win over new subscribers.
- Yet the new software licensing deal with Comcast appears to be the best move for TiVo.
- Most of the Stock Advisor recommendations have performed far better than this one.
- Share your thoughts or pilfer those of others in our TiVo discussion board.
Longtime Fool contributor Rick Munarriz does have a TiVo, but he does not own shares in the company. The Fool has a disclosure policy. He is also part of the Rule Breakers newsletter research team, seeking out tomorrow's ultimate growth stocks a day early.