got a lifetime membership--how do i buy a new box? [Text View]

gastrof

08-06-2006, 01:32 AM

First you'll have to tell us first what you mean by you "got" a lifetime membership.

Was this a giftcard?

TiVo is no longer offering new LIFETIME subscriptions (except on the Humax DVD units, I think). Who did you get this from, and what form is it in?

I believe there was a form of LIFETIME purchase that could be made ahead of time, and that they will still honor, but you've got to give us more details than you have.

(By the way....if you do have a legit LIFETIME sub that can be be applied to a new machine, you might want to wait for the Series 3....should only be a few more months before it's on the market.)

tivophilia

08-06-2006, 01:56 AM

I have a lifetime membership, purchased back in the day when they were $249, as I recall. It is recognized as such when I go to account manager.

lessd

08-06-2006, 02:17 AM

I have a lifetime membership, purchased back in the day when they were $249, as I recall. It is recognized as such when I go to account manager.

That had to be on a TiVo that you had at the time you paid TiVo $249, (Your account should give you the TSN of that TiVo) the lifetime will stay with that TiVo as lifetime is that of the TiVo it was put on not the person who bought it. I don't know if you still have that TiVo and if it works, if not your out of luck as lifetime can't be Xfered ( except on a TiVo approved repair )

classicsat

08-06-2006, 11:55 AM

It is Not!!! a membership. And you don't have it. It is a subscription that belongs to the box, and is generally non-transferrable to other hardware.

lordbah

08-06-2006, 12:21 PM

GoHokies!

08-06-2006, 12:23 PM

No.

That would be theft, and that's bad, mm'kay? :rolleyes:

wscannell

08-06-2006, 12:29 PM

To spin this a different way: suppose, like the original poster, one has an ancient TiVo with a lifetime subscription. Then one buys a new TiVo box, while also keeping the ancient one. The ancient one continues to receive the program guide, no charge. Can that info be copied over to the new box?

No, you must have a subscription for each box that you use. There is a multi-service discount (MSD) of $6.95 a month for the second box as long as you do not purchase a box that has the subscription included. If you do have a box with the subscription included, you must wait until the subscription is complete, then you can switch to the MSD.

mick66

08-06-2006, 07:37 PM

MSD - multi service discount

lessd

08-06-2006, 11:47 PM

No, you must have a subscription for each box that you use. There is a multi-service discount (MSD) of $6.95 a month for the second box as long as you do not purchase a box that has the subscription included. If you do have a box with the subscription included, you must wait until the subscription is complete, then you can switch to the MSD.

But the old one has to make a call at least every 6 months or the MSD goes away.

mchips

08-07-2006, 12:07 AM

I have a lifetime membership, purchased back in the day when they were $249, as I recall. It is recognized as such when I go to account manager. To put it simply, the Lifetime subscription was for the lifetime of the box, not the lifetime of the individual, and as such, it stays with the box and cannot be transferred to another box, except for TiVo approved repairs as someone else stated, or if you had purchased the Lifetime subscription before January 2000, which then it's allowed a one-time only transfer to another box.

mikebridge

08-07-2006, 12:13 PM

or if you had purchased the Lifetime subscription before January 2000, which then it's allowed a one-time only transfer to another box. IIRC, lifetime subscriptions at that point were less then the OP's quoted price of $249, thus the unit in question was most likely activated after the grandfather date of that exception.

GoHokies!

08-07-2006, 04:04 PM

IIRC, lifetime subscriptions at that point were less then the OP's quoted price of $249, thus the unit in question was most likely activated after the grandfather date of that exception.

Sadly, it seems we'll never find out, as the OP seems to have left us.

I guess he figured out that we weren't a bunch of l337 h4K3r d00dZ that were going to help him steal Tivo service.

timr_42

08-07-2006, 04:56 PM

Sadly, it seems we'll never find out, as the OP seems to have left us.

I guess he figured out that we weren't a bunch of l337 h4K3r d00dZ that were going to help him steal Tivo service.

Call me out of touch, but what does l337 mean????

GoHokies!

08-07-2006, 04:59 PM

I'm probably the out of touch one, "l337" was "leet" or "elite", and always a part of the phrase.

But that was over 10 years ago when I was in HS.

lordbah

08-07-2006, 11:15 PM

No.

That would be theft, and that's bad, mm'kay? :rolleyes:

I don't view it that way. It would be a way of getting what one paid for - a lifetime subscription, meaning the lifetime of the *customer*. It certainly wasn't explained to me at the time of purchase that this stayed with the *box*, and I certainly never expected that - what the heck good does it do me for the box to have a lifetime subscription, I know darn well the box is going to have to be replaced and upgraded multiple times during my lifetime, obviously "lifetime" must mean *my* lifetime. Only what was obvious to me wasn't obvious to TiVo. (Was it in the fine print? Maybe. I can't find any documents now.)

Yeah, I'm well aware that I'm going to lose this battle. But at least I got an opportunity to vent.

So, like many others, I now have a DISincentive to upgrade, because it will introduce a monthly fee where there wasn't one before. I loathe monthly fees, bleeding me dry over the years. And if it's the cable company, they raise the rates every two months. How can I trust that TiVo won't do the same? I go for the one-time purchase whenever I can.

In my case the "lifetime" subscription was $299, and has lasted 3.5 years so far. (wow, only 3.5 years? Seems like I've had it forever. But that's the right year, I had just gotten TiVo but had no power for the NCAA championship, had to watch SU beat Kansas at Hooters.)

maki

08-07-2006, 11:22 PM

Everytime TiVo said "Lifetime" somewhere there was an asterisk next to it and below it said lifetime of the hardware, not the subscriber.

If you get a TiVo package you enter a contract - they can't raise your rate for 1, 2, or 3 years. I don't think anyone expects the $12.95/month flat rate to be raised any time soon.

I hate monthly fees too but I get used to them. There are more expensive things in life than a TiVo.

GoHokies!

08-08-2006, 06:01 AM

I don't view it that way. It would be a way of getting what one paid for - a lifetime subscription, meaning the lifetime of the *customer*.

Right - because you didn't read and do the research. Don't blame Tivo for your inability to understand what you were getting into BEFORE you got into it. At that point PRODUCT Lifetime was well advertised as such.

And really, just because you think that it isn't theft doesn't make it so. That's like someone that works retail thinking that they should make more an hour than they do and "making up the difference" in cash from the register. See how well that excuse suits you then...

cwerdna

08-08-2006, 06:06 AM

Call me out of touch, but what does l337 mean????
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/children/leetspeak.mspx is a good primer on "leetspeak".

lordbah

08-08-2006, 07:23 AM

Right - because you didn't read and do the research. Don't blame Tivo for your inability to understand what you were getting into BEFORE you got into it. At that point PRODUCT Lifetime was well advertised as such.

And really, just because you think that it isn't theft doesn't make it so. That's like someone that works retail thinking that they should make more an hour than they do and "making up the difference" in cash from the register. See how well that excuse suits you then...

Heh, I knew I was setting myself up for being attacked by some fanatic, but I posted anyway. Your analogy is spurious - so I'll offer one of my own that's just as silly. You purchase a service for a year. The company shuts it off after 88 days. When you protest, they point out that you failed to do proper research, when they used the word "year" they meant one revolution of the planet Mercury around the Sun.

I know you don't agree. I certainly don't expect to convince you. I don't expect to convince TiVo. I still think it was wrong of them to take the common word "lifetime" and decide that it applies to the inorganic box rather than the living customer. Especially when a reasonable person would clearly prefer it the other way (why would I want the box to not have to pay? I want *me* to not have to pay).

A court would probably agree with you.

It's the kind of thing which makes one consider alternatives which don't have a monthly fee.

Jonathan_S

08-08-2006, 11:07 AM

If you really want lifetime service on a new TiVo there are a couple ways to go about that. (Not as convenient as simply transferring lifetime would have been, but possible).

The first option is: you could buy a Humax TiVo. Because of the agreement between the two companies TiVo still offers Lifetime (of the box) subscriptions for new (never activated) Humax TiVos.

The second option is: buy a lifetime gift card off of ebay and use it to apply lifetime to whatever new TiVo you want.

You could then sell your existing lifetime TiVo on ebay to cover some of cost of rebuying lifetime.

lmurray

08-08-2006, 11:49 AM

ZeoTiVo

08-08-2006, 12:00 PM

It's possible, and I'm hoping that Tivo will offer the lifetime subscription transfer with the introductions of the S3. Some of you will remember that tivo did this early with the release of the S2. Tivo let you move your lifetime subscriptions from a S1 box to a brand new S2 box. A recent conversation with a tivo customrer service person leads me to believe this may happen. (Tivo, if you are reading this, please offer this transfer option for your original tivo users)

-Lloyd-
while this would be excellent I highly doubt it. Either TiVo is highly selective in who gets the offer (Had a series 1 and now has a series 2) which will piss off customers or else it offers a blanket transfer to all lifetime owners now, even someone who got a free refurb and then lifetimed it, which would be a very dumb business move.

the only way this makes sense is if TiVo does some kind of lifetime offer designed to get some S3's moved off the shelf while the price is still high. Or perhaps TiVo will offer a higher price on a lifetime for S3 after feedback on taking lifetime away.

in any event - Customer Service Person info of this nature has never been a good guide

ADent

08-08-2006, 06:25 PM

We don't mean to jump on your case.

But TiVo has always meant for the lifetime of the box. They make money on the subscription, not the hardware.

In January 2000 the lifetime thing was not clear to everyone, so they started to make it clear on the boxes. On the screens. Supposed to make it clear if you call in (CSRs don't always follow the script). They they allowed everyone who bought Product Lifetime service before that date a one time tranfser.

So it is likely somewhere you saw the Product Lifetime limitations. However if you bought a TiVo in plain box or w/o box and called in and the CSR didn't say anything you could be legitimately clueless. You can try talking to one of the TiVo people, but they have been very hardline on the Jan 2000 deadline.

BTW just as a warning - any TiVo you activate (new, used, whatever) has a 1 year committment now and an early termination fee if you cancel service before the year is up.

GoHokies!

08-08-2006, 07:31 PM

Not really a fanatic here, just a realist who reads what I sign and understands agreements that I enter into. it isn't called "product lifetime" for nothing. To make your analogy more correct, it would be if the company sold the product for a "Mercurian (Mercuric?) Year" or a "Year*" where you would have to find the little * that had a note saying 88 Earth days ;)

As far as my other the stealing money thing, that was right on as my point was that "because I deserve it" isn't a valid reason to steal things.

jjberger2134

08-08-2006, 09:10 PM

I don't view it that way. It would be a way of getting what one paid for - a lifetime subscription, meaning the lifetime of the *customer*. It certainly wasn't explained to me at the time of purchase that this stayed with the *box*, and I certainly never expected that - what the heck good does it do me for the box to have a lifetime subscription, I know darn well the box is going to have to be replaced and upgraded multiple times during my lifetime, obviously "lifetime" must mean *my* lifetime. Only what was obvious to me wasn't obvious to TiVo. (Was it in the fine print? Maybe. I can't find any documents now.)

Yeah, I'm well aware that I'm going to lose this battle. But at least I got an opportunity to vent.

So, like many others, I now have a DISincentive to upgrade, because it will introduce a monthly fee where there wasn't one before. I loathe monthly fees, bleeding me dry over the years. And if it's the cable company, they raise the rates every two months. How can I trust that TiVo won't do the same? I go for the one-time purchase whenever I can.

In my case the "lifetime" subscription was $299, and has lasted 3.5 years so far. (wow, only 3.5 years? Seems like I've had it forever. But that's the right year, I had just gotten TiVo but had no power for the NCAA championship, had to watch SU beat Kansas at Hooters.)

It is too bad that you disagree. As others have said, TiVo has called it "Product Lifetime" since at least 2002, as the attached brochure that I had from Best Buy will show you. It never had to be "explained" to me, since it was clearly printed on all of the TiVo documentation at that time.

maki

08-08-2006, 09:35 PM

1999 tivo.com "Buy tivo": http://web.archive.org/web/20001005175413/tivo.com/buy/buy.html

Lifetime Service: Applies to the lifetime of the recorder - not of the subscriber.

GoHokies!

08-08-2006, 09:42 PM

1999 tivo.com "Buy tivo": http://web.archive.org/web/20001005175413/tivo.com/buy/buy.html

In the theme of my previous "leet speek":

0WN3D!!!

OK, I'm done acting like a kid for a while ;)

dstoffa

08-08-2006, 10:29 PM

Lifetime Service: Applies to the lifetime of the recorder - not of the subscriber.

But since I program the device, am I NOT the recorder? Therefore, as long as I am alive, I should have service.

One used to say, "I recorded that last night. I will watch it later." What does that mean?

Poor choice of words at the time, imho.

-Doug

mchips

08-08-2006, 10:50 PM

But since I program the device, am I NOT the recorder? Therefore, as long as I am alive, I should have service.

One used to say, "I recorded that last night. I will watch it later." What does that mean?

Poor choice of words at the time, imho.

-Doug If you're the recorder, then who's the "subscriber?"

It would not make you the "recorder" by saying that you recorded it. What's implied is that you recorded it through your recorder, not that you're the recorder...

A TiVo is a Digital Video Recorder. So, the TiVo is obviously the "recorder" and people record through it, not themselves...

Just like if you were to say, "I printed that last night... I will read it later." Does that then make you the printer as well...

People now say "I TiVo'd that last night... I will watch it later." Does that make people TiVo's now, too...

Sounds like a bit of a stretch there to try and make the "recorder" in that clause to mean the lifetime of the individual, when it's clear that it meant the device that recorded it, and not the person behind the device... ;)

TiVoMonkey

08-09-2006, 12:27 AM

But since I program the device, am I NOT the recorder? Therefore, as long as I am alive, I should have service.

No, that would make you the programmer.

You do not posess the means, by yourself, to record data and store it digitally on a hard drive. That's what the recorder does. You only told it what to record as the one that subscribes to the recording service.

Thus, you are the subscriber in that scenario, obviously.

maki

08-09-2006, 12:59 AM

But since I program the device, am I NOT the recorder?

How dare you? TiVos put all of their time and effort into being your recorder.

jfh3

08-09-2006, 01:28 AM

Deacon West

08-09-2006, 02:07 AM

Just the thought of TiVo doing this might strike fear in those that bought gift cards on ebay for 6 bills or more!

dstoffa

08-09-2006, 06:20 AM

If you're the recorder, then who's the "subscriber?"

Sounds like a bit of a stretch there to try and make the "recorder" in that clause to mean the lifetime of the individual, when it's clear that it meant the device that recorded it, and not the person behind the device... ;)

Agreed. But I am putting on my 1999 hat right now, and trying to explain WHY someone would think that Lifetime would mean the life of the individual, and NOT the life of the physical device.

Usage of the terms at that time could easily be misunderstood.

****, if the VCR breaks, I don't. I'll go out and buy another one. Why should I have to pay for yet another lifetime........

:)

tinkerbelle

08-09-2006, 01:05 PM

Will the membership be recognized when I activate a new box?

Hi, I just had to purchase a new tv. I got a samsung that supports analog and hdtv. it is a flat screen, not lcd or plasma.
It arrived today and I get tivo fine, but the regular channels are all snow. Called samsung, they sent me to tivo. Finally , CS says, oh if it is hdtv we don't support it. Not sure when we will. I paid for the life time on my tivo last december when I bought it. Found no info on the tivo site re: hdtv, but we evidently must switch to it soon. That is why I picked this tv.
NO idea if circuit city ( who sells tivo and knew my concern about hooking up current peripherals like dvd, vcr and tivo) will fix this, and tivo has no idea if I will get any credit.
I just feel like I got hosed all around.
So, here I am with tivo, new tv and no picture again. ( and I use macs too) 8-). Any suggestions?

mchips

08-09-2006, 01:35 PM

Agreed. But I am putting on my 1999 hat right now, and trying to explain WHY someone would think that Lifetime would mean the life of the individual, and NOT the life of the physical device.

Usage of the terms at that time could easily be misunderstood.

****, if the VCR breaks, I don't. I'll go out and buy another one. Why should I have to pay for yet another lifetime........

:) Yes, but that really is a huge stretch, and I don't believe anyone actually believed the "recorder" was the person...

I can see where you're trying to make the connection, and it's a nice try, but it just doesn't compute...

Sorry, but I just can't believe there are people that ignorant to have thought that they were the "recorder", and if they did, who did they think the "subscriber" was then, because it clearly stated that it was not for the lifetime of the subscriber...

It's more conceivable that people just assumed Lifetime meant their lifetime, because, as many people do, they don't read the terms... they heard the word lifetime, and then just assumed what they wanted it to mean... the fault lies with the consumer for not reading the terms of the Lifetime option... I've always known that the Lifetime option was for the box, as it has always been made clear to me... no one had to explain it to me, and I didn't have to read far to find out...

The difference between the VCR and a TiVo was in having to understand what the TiVo service was, and why we had to pay separate for it... we weren't in Kansas anymore, and a TiVo is much more than a VCR, and it was probably difficult for some people to get out of the mindset of a VCR and into the new digital age...

But the one thing that didn't change, and probably why they chose that term, was that a VCR was called a recorder, and so is a TiVo... and therefore, people should have easily understood that "recorder" meant the device and "subscriber" meant the individual...

With a VCR having always been called a recorder (Video Cassette Recorder), it was clear before TiVo entered the picture that the device is the recorder, not the person... the term used has been that people "program" a VCR, which would then make them the programmer of the recorder, not the recorder itself...

mchips

08-09-2006, 01:46 PM

Hi, I just had to purchase a new tv. I got a samsung that supports analog and hdtv. it is a flat screen, not lcd or plasma.
It arrived today and I get tivo fine, but the regular channels are all snow. Called samsung, they sent me to tivo. Finally , CS says, oh if it is hdtv we don't support it. Not sure when we will. I paid for the life time on my tivo last december when I bought it. Found no info on the tivo site re: hdtv, but we evidently must switch to it soon. That is why I picked this tv.
NO idea if circuit city ( who sells tivo and knew my concern about hooking up current peripherals like dvd, vcr and tivo) will fix this, and tivo has no idea if I will get any credit.
I just feel like I got hosed all around.
So, here I am with tivo, new tv and no picture again. ( and I use macs too) 8-). Any suggestions? A Series 2 TiVo can record standard definition broadcasts only; it can't record HD, just like a standard television cannot view HD...

In case you've missed the buzz, TiVo is coming out with a new box, termed the Series 3, that will be able to record in HD... they recently sent out a notice to cable companies that the S3 is currently in beta testing, soon to be available for purchase... they notified the cable companies so that they could be ready with the necessary cablecards for the S3 when it's finally available...

Are you able to view HD channels on your TV without the TiVo... if not, then there's still another underlying problem with your setup... but, in any case, an S2 cannot record HD...

However, if you're viewing and trying to record standard def broadcasts through your TiVo, then it should still work with your HDTV. An HDTV should be able to view both standard def and hi-def...

Dan203

08-09-2006, 03:03 PM

Don't waste any time thinking about it - no chance this will happen.

None. Zip. Nada.

Agreed! TiVo has good reason to offer the transfer the first time around. First off, at the time, the S2 units were actually pulling a small profit. And the user had to buy one at full price to make the swap. Secondly by upgrading to a S2 the user had the option to switch to using a network connection for their daily call, which if used saved TiVo money on dial-up ISP charges. And lastly it gave people incentive to upgrade to their newly annouonced HMO package, which at the time cost $99.

There is really no incentive to TiVo to get people to upgrade from a S2 to an S3. Plus they really want the Lifetime service to die with the S2 units. That's why they cut it off before the S2DT units came out and absolutely will not be offering it on the S3 units, except where they have to. (i.e. Giftcards)

Dan

stewiebgood

08-14-2006, 03:27 AM

I purchased my Humax including subscription service over the phone October 2005 presumably directly with TiVo or whatever marketing company they contracted with. I remember clearly asking question after question as to what payment plan made the most sense. The customer service representative was very candid in explaining the "lifetime membership", of course. This particular person was also very clear in explaining the membership applied to the DVR.

That was key for me therefore I opted for a monthly membership for two reasons. My major appliances of late had not lasted more than two or three years with the cost to repair prohibitive vs. a new purchase. Last but not least I'm a self confessed gadget swapper. Couldn't see myself sticking with the same box more than 24 months and I doubt I'll make if they come up with a Series 3 DVR with a burner such as my current model.