Earlier today I was browsing through my TiVo RSS feeds when I stumbled upon this post. In the post, the author talks about an experience he had with a DirecTV customer service rep. Essentially the rep told him that he was going to be shipped a new TiVo however, when the “TiVo” arrived it was actually a DirecTV DVR. According to another customer service reps, DirecTV actually uses the term “TiVo” as a generic term for a DVR.

After twenty or thirty minutes I had successfully ordered the unit and waited patiently for the unit to arrive. I talked to the installer and asked how long it would take to install the TIVO and he said it would only take ten minutes or so. This evening I arrived at home to check out the new install only to learn it was a DirectTV branded DVR.

Has TiVo lost their brand name? In fact, this isn’t the first time I’ve heard somebody use TiVo as a generic term for a DVR. In my opinion, this is one of the biggest issues facing TiVo today. Without a brand name, you’re just another box of Kleenex. Back in 2004, TiVo had tried to defend their trademark however, I’m not sure how successful the campaign really was. After all, how do you prevent somebody from using your company name in a generic way?

In no way am I trying to say that other DVRs are equivalent to TiVo. Without a doubt, I think TiVo is the best DVR on the market. In fact, I always correct somebody when they use the term TiVo incorrectly. All I’m trying to say is that TiVo needs to be aware of the risk they face and how this could ultimately hurt the companies’ image.