Xperi Announces Vestel as First CE OEM for TiVo OS Platform

Xperi launched its TiVo OS media platform at IFA 2022 Wednesday, saying Turkish electronics maker Vestel will ship the first Powered by TiVo smart TVs in Europe next year. Xperi CEO Jon Kirchner teased the news on the company’s August earnings call when he said the company had signed its first licensee for the technology (see 2208090037). Xperi is targeting tier 2 brands, “and some tier 1s,” with TiVo OS, Kirchner said on the call, saying the company is pitching the platform to brands looking for an open-end smart TV platform with “flexibility to customize their own user experience,” have a direct-to-consumer relationship and “participate in monetization over the long-term.” The Wednesday announcement referenced TiVo OS as a “first-of-its-kind neutral platform, aimed at giving [OEMs] significantly more control over the user experience and helping consumers cut through the clutter of streaming and linear content options with simplified universal discovery.” Xperi estimates 40% of the smart TV market is looking for an “independent platform like ours,” said Kirchner, calling TiVo a “supportive industry partner with deep domain expertise.” He said 30 million households worldwide use TiVo via connected TVs and other partners. A Powered by TiVo TV can deliver “better viewer engagement with an unbiased content-first user experience where live hybrid TV and streaming services are fully integrated,” and consumers can “intuitively discover” content across their streaming apps in a "free, familiar, and frictionless experience,” Xperi said. On the August call, Kirchner called the TiVo OS platform “content-agnostic. We're not trying to entirely control the direct-to-consumer relationship,” he said: “That’s for the people who make the equipment." Xperi isn’t trying to mirror streaming TV platform models on the market today, Kirchner said, saying TiVo OS strengths are in technology, business model and independence.