Bright House Networks has reworked its TV interface that lets consumers better search and find content using separate buttons on their remotes – part of an ongoing trend by cablecos to provide easier access to vast arrays of content assets.
The new Bright House Networks Digital Navigator makes searching through the company's hundreds of channels of digital and HD programming easier, faster and more efficient. The navigator features easy-to-read screens, a consolidated access menu and a guide to what's-on-now programming sorted by categories, according to the operator.
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) is amid a related effort with TiVo Inc. (TIVO) whereby a $2.99 software upgrade to customers in Greater Boston empowers them to search across broadcast TV, on-demand programming and online assets, with content-tagged HD where they are available in high definition. The package, which was demonstrated at the Consumer Electronics Show in 2008, also enables content searches by movie title, actor/actress and more.
TV providers fear consumers are not aware of, or able to find, content of interest with basic capabilities such as TV show titles when spelled. And often, search is separated by TV show and movie and largely lacks online discovery capability.
Some believe cablecos are at a disadvantage in having to evolve legacy systems with roots in other decades while newer entrants, such as telcos, start with a largely clean slate.
Bright House claims the new navigator makes “virtually anything a customer wants to find” accessible via the digital remote's "A," "B" or "C" buttons.
The "A" button lets the viewer look at the menu that offers movies on demand, premiums on demand, free on demand and HD TV channels, as well as news, weather and children’s categories.
The cableco says the "B" button lets viewers search current and upcoming programming by category, title and rating, while the "C" button returns the digital remote to its most recent menus.
Bright House promises two other new video features will be coming soon to its digital subscribers.
Quick Clips will allow viewers to check out short-form videos related to the channel they're watching without having to leave the channel, along with quick access to other related channels.
For example, Bright House says, “a viewer watching CNN could check out video clips on recent news items or tune to CNN HD or CNN On Demand quickly and easily.” Quick Clips will be available for several popular channels on the Bright House Networks system including The Weather Channel, Comedy Central, MTV, CNN, CNBC, Showtime and Fox Reality. New networks equipped with Quick Clips are scheduled to be available throughout 2009.
Bright House also has plans for a free service called Start Over, that lets digital subscribers restart live TV programming from the beginning with the remote. The cableco claims Start Over also allows viewers to pause a show for up to five minutes, rewind a program while it's on and restart the same program multiple times during its broadcast time.
