Satellite TV

People are almost always concerned about their privacy while using the internet, they are always interested in downloading a latest version of spy wares to combat the global fight for anonymity and most of times it is there right, offcourse I will not go into the details of bills of rights, but if they came to know that their TiVo unit is sending data to TiVo head quarter, they will surely panic.

TiVo privacy policy:

TiVo’s encompasses the privacy issue as,” anonymous viewing information is used to formulate analyses and reports about the programs, advertisement and types of programs user watch or skip”, and to further elucidate the matter “Generally, we disclose aggregated account information and aggregated viewing information and the analysis derived from the viewing information to third parties like, advertiser, movie maker and broadcaster etc”.

How it works:

What exactly the unit does regarding back channel information and sending viewer anonymous data is TiVo sends back two files. A debug log file for the TiVo’s software, this file contains the serial number and identification information but zero viewing data. The other one is viewing information file and this is anonymous, without serial number but it is time stamped. Both the files are sent back to an FTP or HTTP servers. Your encrypted viewing data combined with 150,000 other people’s encrypted viewing data, sorted by region (zip code is included) is sent to TiVo headquarter for assessment and to improve the service.

Uses of anonymous data:

If the user prefer to rate the program this information is also sent to TiVo headquarter, User can also voice there choice by rating the programs they like the most, by choosing from three thumbs up to three thumbs down.

Blocking anonymous data collection:

Anonymity stood first when viewing information is sorted to draw inferences but if a user consider it as an infringement of his/her privacy user can lodge the request to block the anonymous viewing information and diagnostic information from their TiVo unit by calling 1-877-367-8486. This service of blocking data collection is available only in USA.

Conclusion:

Unlike Nielsen rating TiVo unit in your living room is not collecting any demographic information and is not watching you like famously stated in 1984 by George Orwell “big brother is watching you”, or else like German Gestapo. TiVo use anonymous data for the improvement of services and hardware performance, TiVo currently share the data with partner companies like hardware manufactures and advertisers but in all cases privacy is always taken into consideration.