You're not allowed to change the channel during commercials

[cynatnite]

Philips suggests adding flags to commercial breaks to stop a viewer from changing channels until the adverts are over. The flags could also be recognised by digital video recorders, which would then disable the fast forward control while the ads are playing.

Philips' patent acknowledges that this may be "greatly resented by viewers" who could initially think their equipment has gone wrong. So it suggests the new system could throw up a warning on screen when it is enforcing advert viewing. The patent also suggests that the system could offer viewers the chance to pay a fee interactively to go back to skipping adverts.

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn9011

[Teaser]

1. I am going to find this guy

and "reason" with him.

[TechBear_Seattle]

8. This person clearly needs "percussive maintenance" n/t

[The Magistrate]

20. Indeed, Sir

If that does not do the trick, perhaps an "energetic dis-assembly" might at least provide an example for the rest....

[TechBear_Seattle]

24. "Energetic dis-assembly"

I believe that is percussive maintenance involving a wall, a long drop or an SUV.

[The Magistrate]

28. The Phrase Was Used, Sir

To indicate an explosion, and has stuck in my mind as a true classic, along with "If you could see tomorrow as it looks to us today...."

[Initech]

2. So he wants to make us pay to be able to skip commercials? Lame.

Seriously fucking lame.

[Renew Deal]

3. That will just people to new mediums.

So have at it.

[Nickster]

4. Heh, heh, heh....good luck trying to make that one work. Ain't no darn way

I'm going to watch ads on a dvr. There's always a way around these things.

[hamerfan]

6. Watch PBS

No ads to fast-forward through!
dumpbush

[Tesha]

25. "Archer Daniels Midland: Supermarket to the World..."

(You don't think that's an advert?)

Tesha

[cynatnite]

7. I hope so...

'cause if there ain't any hacks for it and every other TV manufacturer picks it up, I'm cancelling my cable.

I'll either download what I want illegally, rent it or buy it.

[baby_mouse]

5. Bye bye TV!

Nobody wants to watch adverts, you silly boy!

[ArbustoBuster]

9. "Edison! An off-switch!"

"She'll get years for that. Off-switches are illegal."

From Max Headroom, one of the most prescient programs ever.

[CrispyQ]

19. 20 minutes into the future!

I love Max Headroom!

And your screen name is pretty cool, too! :hi:

[sharp_stick]

10. Kind of like watching DVDs

Now you have to sit through the damned FBI warning and all the other stuff that the manufacturer wants you to see. At least with my old DVD player you do, I can't hit the menu feature, all I get is a little no/no symbol and on we go watching some idiotic Adam Sandler trailer or something.

At least with VHS you could hit the FF button and skim it, now I have to leave the room if I want to miss everything to the menu.

[Jigarotta]

13. that is SO annoying.

being forced to watch previews for other movies... and sometimes there's tons of them!

I get red in the face with anger when I'm hijacked like that.
There is no way I am going to enjoy Paying to See advertising.

[RufusEarl]

11. Go ahead A hole, I'll just time my breaks better!

[TlalocW]

12. Feh

Not only will the rage over this be directed towards the advertisers, but within days, if not hours, there will be dozens of sites that will tell you how to do a hack to bypass it.

TlalocW

[Atman]

14. I'll tell my son. He'll have a hack by tomorrow night.

Jesus.

I used to be in marketing, as part of my larger career discipline. I only sold women's clothing, but we did the same kind of "brainstorming" to come up with ways to get customers to fork over more dough. It's like a pox on my past that I'll never be able to erase. There is nothing inherently wrong with being in "marketing," but these assholes give the whole profession its "Used car salesman" reputation. Except for that many of us would rather our children marry used car salesmen than marketers these days.

[jsamuel]

15. I thought the whole point of cable was no commercials

Then I thought the whole point of tivo was no commercials
Then I thought the whole point of no commercial subscription was no commercials
...
...
...

[electropop]

16. Glad I dumped my TV last summer.

My life is so much better now.

[oscar111]

18. SIX OR EIGHTEEN times the cost of PBS.. that is what commercial tv costs

you, because you pay for the NBC etc ads when you go buy the groceries that pay to create ads for tv. Madison Avenue ads cost a lot, you pay at the grocery.

i forget.. is it six or eighteen times.. net cost to you, pbs vs such as NBC?

[badgerpup]

17. It wasn't an issue before...

but now I am ECSTATIC that I don't have a TV.
What a lot of nonsense, bullshit and commercial battering y'all have to put up with...
:wtf:

[fleabert]

21. mute button works nicely for me...can't fuck with an independent sound

system, asshole.

I will cancel my DVR if I can't fast forward thru the bullshit ads.

[Mojambo]

22. Entirely predictable.

They will force feed us like animals.

[KamaAina]

23. No doubt they'll call it the Philips Telescreen (TM)

"You can turn it off!"

"Yes, we have that privilege." -O'Brien to Winston, 1984

[Joe Chi Minh]

26. I thought it was an outrage beyond belief that the corporate scum

were permitted tos train out certain registers of sound, in order to make the ads sound louder. It's one of the worst kind of environmental disfigurement.

When people come home from work, the last thing they want is to hear is advertisements suddenly blaring out, and having to jump to grab the handset to mute the sound or turn it down. But this latest suggestion is straight from the Monsanto or Diebold text book.

The obvious response would be to boycott the TV or the products of every advertiser on it you possibly could.

Wouldn't "percussive emollition" be more appropriate. I don't get the "maintenance" bit.

[McCamy Taylor]

27. Who will buy this turkey? Only if they get the GOP to require it.

[NYC Liberal]

29. Well on the bright side:

If they patent it, at least no other TV manufacturer will be able to use it. Then we can just avoid Philips.

[cynatnite]

31. Philips isn't that stupid...

they know if they were the only ones with this, they'd lose big. The only real alternative for this is to make a deal with the others.

Corporate big wigs are loving it.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

30. There Is Something So Inherently Sick About This.

Fuck them. It'll take no time at all for someone else to ensure we can skip the commercials just fine for free. Controlling Punk Ass Mother Fuckers.

[Gregorian]

32. This is our future.

[Book Lover]

33. Pay an effing fee? I AM THE PRODUCT!!!

TV networks sell my eyeballs to advertisers - I am the product they sell! And now they want me to pay a fine before I can move on?