RCN has begun to rollout next-gen TiVo hardware that is equipped with six tuners and 1 terabyte of storage.
The deployment marks RCN’s debut of TiVo’s T6 platform, which is the operator-optimized version of the hardware for TiVo’s new retail-focused Roamio Plus DVR. Atlantic Broadband was the first cable operator to deploy the T6. The ZatzNotFunny blog reported in May that RCN is leasing the T6 for $45 per month.
The new set-up will let RCN subs record up to six shows at once, record up to 150 hours of HD video or 1,200 hours in standard-definition. RCN’s T6 also builds in the TiVo Stream, a transcoding component that lets users stream live TV and recorded shows to other TVs and connected devices in the customer’s home (the retail-focused Roamio version allows out-of-home viewing), and sideload recorded shows to iOS devices for on-the-go viewing, save for some premium content that is marked as “copy once.” The T6 allows simultaneous streaming of recorded content to as many as three devices on the home network.
RCN’s version also integrates apps from Netflix, YouTube and the Opera TV Store, and a cross-platform search that can sift through RCN’s live TV lineup and VOD library, as well as the supported apps and OTT offerings.
RCN’s primary service areas include Washington, D.C.; Philadelphia and Lehigh Valley, Pa.; Boston; and Chicago, where it competes with Comcast; and in New York, where it matches up with Time Warner Cable and Cablevision Systems.
