TiVo Ads on Demand DOA

TiVo today announced a service where viewers will be able to select the ads that they want to see. Along with list of saved programs, TiVoers will be able to see stored ads about electronics, travel, or automotive.

Of course 99 percent of viewers probably will never ask to see the opt-in ads, so this arrangement isn't going to do much for TiVo's bottom line.

However, the idea of consumers choosing which ads they view could be useful if TiVo makes the courageous (and company saving) move of offering its hardware and service for free and requiring watching one ad before each time recorded program. I'm also all for the idea of opt-in ads online. Ad-supported sites should give me a choice in the categories of ads that I watch, which will make me and the advertisers (since just maybe I'd toss them an occasional click) happy. If the online broadcasts of TV shows always showed me an upcoming movie trailer I'd be happy to watch. "The customer is always right" should extend to picking ads too!

Found via Adotas.