How many times have you called into tech support for one of your ailing audio-video components to hear the same suggestion: “Please power down the unit, sir – wait 30 seconds and power back up”? While this cure-all has been known to fix frozen computer-based products like a DVR or some of the new HD disc players, at this point, don’t the customer service reps think we have already tried powering the unit down and back up again before we call? Chances are, we have.

AT&T has officially launched its satellite set-top box, entitled Homezone. The box is capable of connecting to the Internet for movie downloading from Movielink. It also includes a DVR service for the recording of the satellite service. Recordings also can be made remotely through a Website.

Digital video recording pioneer TiVo Inc.has signed a deal with an online video service, Brightcove Networks Inc., to deliver Web-based programming to TiVo's broadband television boxes. TiVo users will soon have not only TV shows to record, but also Internet-based videos from Brightcove's content partners. Brightcove, a privately held Cambridge, Mass.-based startup, launched its video publishing service in November. Its technology gives established or small independent producers a way to create online videos and then syndicate them through Brightcove's distribution channels, of which TiVo has become the latest.

An invention from Royal Philips Electronics prevents TV viewers from switching the channel during commercials or fast-forwarding past commercials when watching DVR content.

Digital video recording maker TiVo announced it has extended it's partnership with satellite TV provider DirecTV Group Inc. for another three years. Under the agreement, DirecTV will continue to provide TiVo service to its existing subscribers. Both companies also extended their advertising relationship and agreed not to assert patent rights against each other. With DirecTV having recently begun switching to a competing technology from its sister company, News Corp.'s NDS, industry analysts had questioned whether TiVo would be entirely cut off from DirecTV when the old contract expires in February 2007. TiVo could have lost its existing DirecTV subscribers, each of whom brings TiVo roughly $1 a month. The two companies didn't disclose specific financial terms of the deal but said the economics were similar to their original 2003 agreement.