If anything, the downfall of Tivo and other similar products will be TV on Demand. Watch what you want, when you want, recorded or not.
This will depend on pay structures that are devised though. If providers begin charging by content (individual shows watched) verses subscriptions, it may change how much people decide they truly need to watch. This model is not good for advertisers without a yet uninvented cost recovery restructuring so therefore it is not good for networks, and so perhaps unlikely.
Currently, in Canada, the networks are at war, literally, with the cable companies. Cable wants to start charging extra money for the formerly free public stations. Of course, they don't intend to pay the public networks in turn so the public networks are advertising slogans like "Don't let cable companies make you pay twice!".
It will be interesting to see what the CRTC decides. Oh, and let's not forget the new proposed TV tax. Another uproar.
And they wonder why people are turning to the Internet to download free programming?
Agreed and it's available already, online w/ services like Hulu, though I don't think Canada can use it. Hulu is quite good, though it's not exactly HD. But the average person doesn't really care.
