Commercial skipping
Encyclopedia
Commercial skipping is an advanced feature in some digital video recorder
s that makes it possible to automatically skip commercials in recorded programs. This feature had created controversy, with major television networks and movie studios claiming it violates copyright and should be banned.
The first DVR which had a built-in Commercial skipping feature was ReplayTV
with its "4000 Series" and "5000 Series" units. In 2002 five owners of the ReplayTV
DVR sued the main television networks and movie studios, asking the federal judge to uphold consumers' rights to record TV shows and skip commercials claiming that features like commercial skipping help parents protect their kids from excessive consumerism
. ReplayTV ended up filing for bankruptcy in 2003 after fighting a copyright infringement suit over the ReplayTV's ability to skip commercials.
devices which existed in the private market since the late 1990s
, towards the mid-2000s, due to the significant advances in home computers, Home theater PC
s started gaining popularity in the private market and many users began using their Home theater PCs in their living room for entertainment
purposes.
Following this, many PVR programs were developed, including popular programs such as Windows Media Center, which contained all of the features of the PVR devices in addition to advanced features such as HDTV and the use of Multiple TV Tuner Cards
. However, evidently many users who used their PVR software to archive their programs found out that the recorded files took up large amount of hard disk space. Due to this some independent developers began developing independent third-party software capable of skipping the commercial segments from recorded videos as well as permanently removing the commercial segments from the recorded video files.
As of today, many popular PVR programs, such as Windows Media Center
, SageTV
and MythTV
have the ability to skip commercials segments after installing third-party add-ons
, such as DVRMSToolbox, Comskip and ShowAnalyzer which use various advanced techniques to locate the commercial segments in the video files and save their locations to text files. With help of that information many users have the ability to skip the commercials within recorded TV broadcasts. In addition to that, these text files can also be fed into programs such as MEncoder
or DVRMSToolboxGUI which are capable of permanently removing the commercial segments from the recorded video files and thus help reduce the recorded videos file size without losing the video quality.
One of the major weaknesses of those third-party programs is that because most of them operate automatically, occasionally they would mistakenly remove parts of the show in addition to the commercials segments. Also, most of those third-party programs do not allow manual fine-tuning of the commercial segments locations by the users before the actual removal is done.
s, such as TiVo
, and services like Sky+
, which allow the recording of television programs onto a hard drive, also enable viewers to fast-forward through advertisements or automatically skip commercials of recorded programs. Many speculate that television advertisements will be eliminated altogether, replaced by advertising in the TV shows themselves
. For example, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition advertises Sears
, Kenmore
, Kohler
, and Home Depot by specifically using products from these companies.
Another type of advertisement shown more and more, mostly for advertising TV shows on the same channel, is where the ad overlays the bottom of the TV screen, blocking out some of the picture. "Banners", or "Logo Bugs", as they are called, are referred to by media companies as Secondary Events (2E). This is done in much the same way as severe weather warnings are done. Sometimes these take up only 5-10% of the screen, but in the extreme, can take up as much as 25% of the viewing area. Some even make noise or move across the screen. One example of this is the 2E ads for Three Moons Over Milford
in the months before its premiere. A video taking up approximately 25% of the bottom-left portion of the screen would show the main character, Jens Poulsen Schmidt, riding a comet impacting into the moon with an accompanying explosion, during another television program.
Digital video recorder
A digital video recorder , sometimes referred to by the merchandising term personal video recorder , is a consumer electronics device or application software that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card or other local or networked mass storage device...
s that makes it possible to automatically skip commercials in recorded programs. This feature had created controversy, with major television networks and movie studios claiming it violates copyright and should be banned.
History
For many years, video recorders manufactured for the Japanese market have been able to skip advertisements automatically, which is done by detecting when foreign language audio overdub tracks provided for many programmes go silent, as advertisements were broadcast with a single language only.The first DVR which had a built-in Commercial skipping feature was ReplayTV
ReplayTV
ReplayTV is a brand of digital video recorder , a term synonymous with personal video recorder . It is a consumer video device which allows users to capture television programming to internal hard disk storage for later viewing...
with its "4000 Series" and "5000 Series" units. In 2002 five owners of the ReplayTV
ReplayTV
ReplayTV is a brand of digital video recorder , a term synonymous with personal video recorder . It is a consumer video device which allows users to capture television programming to internal hard disk storage for later viewing...
DVR sued the main television networks and movie studios, asking the federal judge to uphold consumers' rights to record TV shows and skip commercials claiming that features like commercial skipping help parents protect their kids from excessive consumerism
Consumerism
Consumerism is a social and economic order that is based on the systematic creation and fostering of a desire to purchase goods and services in ever greater amounts. The term is often associated with criticisms of consumption starting with Thorstein Veblen...
. ReplayTV ended up filing for bankruptcy in 2003 after fighting a copyright infringement suit over the ReplayTV's ability to skip commercials.
Commercial skipping software
In addition to the PVRDigital video recorder
A digital video recorder , sometimes referred to by the merchandising term personal video recorder , is a consumer electronics device or application software that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card or other local or networked mass storage device...
devices which existed in the private market since the late 1990s
1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope floats in space after it was taken up in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields and the USA Lexie in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War; The signing of the Oslo Accords on...
, towards the mid-2000s, due to the significant advances in home computers, Home theater PC
Home theater PC
A Home Theater PC or Media Center appliance is a convergence device that combines some or all the capabilities of a personal computer with a software application that supports video, photo, music playback, and sometimes video recording functionality...
s started gaining popularity in the private market and many users began using their Home theater PCs in their living room for entertainment
Entertainment
Entertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...
purposes.
Following this, many PVR programs were developed, including popular programs such as Windows Media Center, which contained all of the features of the PVR devices in addition to advanced features such as HDTV and the use of Multiple TV Tuner Cards
TV tuner card
A TV tuner card is a kind of television tuner that allows television signals to be received by a computer. Most TV tuners also function as video capture cards, allowing them to record television programs onto a hard disk much like the Tivo digital video recorder does.-Variants: The interfaces for...
. However, evidently many users who used their PVR software to archive their programs found out that the recorded files took up large amount of hard disk space. Due to this some independent developers began developing independent third-party software capable of skipping the commercial segments from recorded videos as well as permanently removing the commercial segments from the recorded video files.
As of today, many popular PVR programs, such as Windows Media Center
Windows Media Center
Windows Media Center is a digital video recorder and media player developed by Microsoft. It is an application that allows users to view and record live television, as well as organize and play music and videos...
, SageTV
SageTV
SageTV Media Center was a proprietary, commercial DVR and HTPC software for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux. It requires that the host computer have a hardware based TV tuner card. The SageTV software has an integrated Electronic Programming Guide that is updated via the Internet...
and MythTV
MythTV
MythTV is a free and open source home entertainment application with a simplified "10-foot user interface" design for the living-room TV, and turns a computer with the necessary hardware into a network streaming digital video recorder, a digital multimedia home entertainment system, or home theater...
have the ability to skip commercials segments after installing third-party add-ons
Third-party software component
In computer programming, a third-party software component is a reusable software component developed to be either freely distributed or sold by an entity other than the original vendor of the development platform...
, such as DVRMSToolbox, Comskip and ShowAnalyzer which use various advanced techniques to locate the commercial segments in the video files and save their locations to text files. With help of that information many users have the ability to skip the commercials within recorded TV broadcasts. In addition to that, these text files can also be fed into programs such as MEncoder
MEncoder
MEncoder is a free command line video decoding, encoding and filtering tool released under the GNU General Public License. It is a close sibling to MPlayer and can convert all the formats that MPlayer understands into a variety of compressed and uncompressed formats using different codecs.MEncoder...
or DVRMSToolboxGUI which are capable of permanently removing the commercial segments from the recorded video files and thus help reduce the recorded videos file size without losing the video quality.
One of the major weaknesses of those third-party programs is that because most of them operate automatically, occasionally they would mistakenly remove parts of the show in addition to the commercials segments. Also, most of those third-party programs do not allow manual fine-tuning of the commercial segments locations by the users before the actual removal is done.
The future of TV advertisements
The introduction of digital video recorderDigital video recorder
A digital video recorder , sometimes referred to by the merchandising term personal video recorder , is a consumer electronics device or application software that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card or other local or networked mass storage device...
s, such as TiVo
TiVo
TiVo is a digital video recorder developed and marketed by TiVo, Inc. and introduced in 1999. TiVo provides an on-screen guide of scheduled broadcast programming television programs, whose features include "Season Pass" schedules which record every new episode of a series, and "WishList"...
, and services like Sky+
Sky+
Sky+, or Sky Plus, is a personal video recorder service for Sky in the UK. Launched in September 2001, it allows the user to record, pause and instantly rewind live TV. The system performs these functions using an internal hard drive inside the Sky+ set top box...
, which allow the recording of television programs onto a hard drive, also enable viewers to fast-forward through advertisements or automatically skip commercials of recorded programs. Many speculate that television advertisements will be eliminated altogether, replaced by advertising in the TV shows themselves
Product placement
Product placement, or embedded marketing, is a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. The product placement is often not disclosed at the time that the...
. For example, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition advertises Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Company
Sears, officially named Sears, Roebuck and Co., is an American chain of department stores which was founded by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck in the late 19th century...
, Kenmore
Kenmore Appliances
Kenmore Appliances was a line of household appliances produced by a variety of manufacturers such as Whirlpool Corp, GE, Panasonic, LG, Bosch, Electrolux, and Mabe Mexico, and controlled by Sears Holdings Corporation; the brand is owned by KCD IP, LLC, a special purpose entity created by Sears...
, Kohler
Kohler Company
'The Kohler Company is a manufacturing company in Kohler, Wisconsin best known for its plumbing products. Kohler also manufactures furniture, cabinetry, tile, engines, and generators.-History:...
, and Home Depot by specifically using products from these companies.
Another type of advertisement shown more and more, mostly for advertising TV shows on the same channel, is where the ad overlays the bottom of the TV screen, blocking out some of the picture. "Banners", or "Logo Bugs", as they are called, are referred to by media companies as Secondary Events (2E). This is done in much the same way as severe weather warnings are done. Sometimes these take up only 5-10% of the screen, but in the extreme, can take up as much as 25% of the viewing area. Some even make noise or move across the screen. One example of this is the 2E ads for Three Moons Over Milford
Three Moons Over Milford
Three Moons Over Milford is an American science fiction dramedy set in a picturesque small town in southern Vermont. Shortly before the series begins, an asteroid hits the Moon, shattering it into three fragments, threatening to eventually fall to Earth and end life...
in the months before its premiere. A video taking up approximately 25% of the bottom-left portion of the screen would show the main character, Jens Poulsen Schmidt, riding a comet impacting into the moon with an accompanying explosion, during another television program.
External links
- DVR commercial skipping: 50% or 70%? Depends on whom you ask
- Commercial skipping to cost $8 billion in TV ads this year?
- Automatic Commercial Skip in Media Center
- Commercial-skipping 'thieves' sue accusers - Fans of Sonicblue gear strike back at entertainment giants
- Television Remixed: The Controversy over Commercial-Skipping
- Comskip—a command-line tool to locate commercials in MPEG files