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[JimH]

We're open for business now.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tvplus/can-jriver-media-center-replace-windows-media-cent

TVPlus is a product we will build to allow recording and playback of Copy Once material from cable companies.  More here.

... if it gets funded ...  We've set a goal of $100,000 and we have 30 days to get there.

Please tell your little sister.

[jmone]

I'm the first pledge!  Kinda pointless being in Oz but anything that helps advance the cause is fine by me.

[mwillems]

I'm number 3 

[kieran]

I'll sign up, but wow, isn't $100,000 in 30 days pretty ambitious for this market?  I have no idea obviously, but how many US licenses are there for MC21?  Are you really expecting 3000-4000 people to sign up?  I hope so, I'm just surprised, that's all. 

[muzicman0]

IN!

[JimH]

I'll sign up, but wow, isn't $100,000 in 30 days pretty ambitious for this market?  I have no idea obviously, but how many US licenses are there for MC21?  Are you really expecting 3000-4000 people to sign up?  I hope so, I'm just surprised, that's all. 

Yes.  It is ambitious.  We may not make it.  But if we can't find a few thousand souls to buy it, maybe it shouldn't be built.  I hope it works.

[Ekpen]

I am on Directv, and really, I do not watch tv much because of the nonsense ads like viagr? and ads geared to all sorts you know what".

I may get IN, just to support the effort.

I will take a look at the campaign information to see how I can get in.

George.

[kieran]

I wonder if you can still change the "rewards" you're offering?

I was thinking it might be good to try to entice owners of a MC21 license to still pledge at the $60 or $70 level.  To entice them, you could offer them a license to the next version of MC, when it comes out (this assumes you're actually working on another major version release).... or something like that.
EDIT: I have pledged.

[syndromeofadown]

I wonder if you can still change the "rewards" you're offering?

There should be Deluxe packages like $500 for TVPlus and a lunch with Jim.

[jmone]

There should be Deluxe packages like $500 for TVPlus and a lunch with Jim.

Great Idea - Hope you like bratwurst!

[russelms]

Can an example be provided as to how one may use a windows machine for recording and a linux machine as an extender. Specifically me and probably many others have a windows machine hosting WMC currently and then a quantity of Xbox 360's as extenders around the house. What would I replace my Xbox 360's with as with particular emphasis on cost, I would love it if a Raspberry Pi 2 could be used by doubt the DRM is possible.

Another angle is what is the most cost efficient linux machine for TV playback?

[JimH]

We won't know how well extenders will work until we're well into the project.  Sorry.

We currently can serve video to an Xbox or a Linux computer running MC.  You could read about our networking features on our wiki:

http://wiki.jriver.com/index.php/Media_Network

[WeeHappyPixie]

Being from the UK I don't have a need for this however as kieran pointed out earlier I too think $100,000 in 30 days pretty ambitious especially at this time of the year. I hope to be proved wrong and want to wish you all the best of luck with your campaign.

John

[wilfredjg]

did it

[greynolds]

Add another $40 to the count.

I also posted something over at The Green Button forum to let people know about the project.  Hopefully that will generate some more interest.

[JimH]

Add another $40 to the count.

I also posted something over at The Green Button forum to let people know about the project.  Hopefully that will generate some more interest.

Thanks very much for both the support and for spreading the news.  Please post a link here if you can.

I found your post here:
http://www.thegreenbutton.tv/forums/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=9474#p98901

Thanks again.

[Gustovier]

Hey Jim,

This is great news. I've even posted on the silicon dust forums.  I think you guys need to find a way to get this out to Engadget and the Verge and a few other media center focused blogs (missing remote,etc..)

One question is why go for playready drm and not dtcp.  I know this limits it to only silicon dust tuners but dtcp seams like an easier solution to implement (I could be wrong). Also if you want to expand clients to android tv / fire tv and maybe even iOS/tvOS seems dtcp is the more portable option.

[JimH]

Thanks.  We may also end up doing DTCP but we'll start with PlayReady.  We've worked with Microsoft's DRM before, so it shouldn't be too bad to do.

I found your post on the SiliconDust forum:
https://www.silicondust.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=96&t=28849&start=30#p165877

[glynor]

I see you updated the video.  Looks nice.

[JimH]

I see you updated the video.  Looks nice.

Yes, thanks very much to you and Kevin.

[JimH]

There is also some discussion on AVSForum.

[greynolds]

Thanks very much for both the support and for spreading the news.  Please post a link here if you can.

I found your post here:
http://www.thegreenbutton.tv/forums/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=9474#p98901

Thanks again.

You're welcome.  I had initially posted in the Ceton and SiliconDust tuner subforums, but the moderators must have decided that the News and Announcement subforum was more appropriate.

[KMac]

I wonder if you can still change the "rewards" you're offering?

I was thinking it might be good to try to entice owners of a MC21 license to still pledge at the $60 or $70 level.  To entice them, you could offer them a license to the next version of MC, when it comes out (this assumes you're actually working on another major version release).... or something like that.
EDIT: I have pledged.

Agreement from a non-JRiver customer here.  A free upgrade to the next version would push my contribution level from the $20 wait-and-see to the $70 fully-on-board, can't wait level.  I won't buy MC21 due to DRM issues, so a bundle is of no use to me.  Dangle an upgrade carrot and I'm all in.

[JimH]

A free upgrade to the next version would push my contribution level from the $20 wait-and-see to the $70 fully-on-board, can't wait level.  I won't buy MC21 due to DRM issues, so a bundle is of no use to me.

We just began work on MC21, so the next version is almost a year off.

Upgrades right now are $26.98 for a single OS and $29.98 for the Master license (Windows, Mac, and Linux).

When we begin each new version, we offer an even greater discount for a few weeks.

You might find this interesting:
JRiver's Business Model

[blgentry]

I see you updated the video.  Looks nice.

It's surprising how much better the video is, now that it's mixed in with proper footage of MC in operation.

Much better!

Brian.

[brett]

I'm strictly OTA so this does nothing for me, but if there was a $10 level just to help the cause, I would donate.

[greynolds]

I'm strictly OTA so this does nothing for me, but if there was a $10 level just to help the cause, I would donate.

I believe the "No thanks, I just want to support the project" option lets you contribute whatever you want.

[brett]

I believe the "No thanks, I just want to support the project" option lets you contribute whatever you want.

I didn't go to the next page so I didn't see that. Thanks. Donation on its way.

[JimH]

Thanks for that!

[greynolds]

A little bird let the guys over at Missing Remote know about the Kickstarter, and here's their article covering it:

http://www.missingremote.com/news/2015-11-22/another-copy-once-cablecard-player-dips-toe

Microsoft WMC is dead, done, dusted. But that doesn't mean that HTPC DVR users have to give up on CableCARD, SiliconDust is trying to build a solution, and now JRiver has started a Kickstarter campaign to see if there's demand for a second Copy Once capable solution.

It's day 27 of 30, and they're looking for $100K (which sounds about right) in funding. If you're looking for a modern solution from an agile company with a proven track record of delivering constant improvement in HTPC software this could be $20 well spent.

Note that they got the number of days left wrong, but it should at least get the word out to some more people.

[JimH]

That's very nice.  Thanks to Andrew Van Til.

[shalamigri]

I just wanted to say that I'm new to JRiver and know very little about it, but I decided to make a contribution to the Kickstarter campaign last night. Hope you guys reach you goal!

[JimH]

Thank you!

[JimH]

Someone on another forum asked to see what the EPG looks like, so I put a short video on Youtube.

Apologies for the focus issues.

[leezer3]

Just a thought-
I see there's now a link to the Kickstarter on your main page, but this is only two words, and not particularly descriptive.

It could *really* do with a sentence or two of description, and I'd say a nice picture to go with it, as otherwise it doesn't really draw people in perhaps the way it ought to

-Leezer-

[SpeedD408]

I'm in.

[franswilco]

Good luck guys. I don't have need for this product and live oversea, but I certainly hope you guys reach the goal none the less.

[hulkss]

Looking for TV use in the future!

[JerryNance]

Jim,
The pledges are not looking too good for the Kickstarter so far, which is a major shame.
There are a lot of us WMC users that are probably looking for a good replacement for WMC.
From what I have seen of MC so far, I really would like to see this TV Plus project succeed.
I'm kind of wondering if there are a lot of WMC users that don't know about MC.
Quite honestly, I had never heard of JRiver MC until something about it was posted on the SiliconDust forums.
I don't really know what the solution is to get the word out to more WMC folks.
But I sure hope this project gets done.
Jerry

[RD James]

There is also some discussion on AVSForum.

I think you should start a new topic for the kickstarter on AVS. Adding a post to an existing topic is not going to get much attention.

[JimH]

I think you should start a new topic for the kickstarter on AVS. Adding a post to an existing topic is not going to get much attention.

Thanks.  Countrybumkin did post:
http://www.avsforum.com/forum/26-home-theater-computers/2217738-jriver-kickstarter-replace-wmc.html

It's much better if users post.  On some forums, posts by companies are discouraged or forbidden.

[CadErik]

Yes.  It is ambitious.  We may not make it.  But if we can't find a few thousand souls to buy it, maybe it shouldn't be built.  I hope it works.

Have to say - while MC is useful for most of the world, these cable technologies are not available in Canada. Bell and Rogers are not compatible with any of these standards.

[Gustovier]

Jim and JRiver team,

Did you guys try to send some PR releases to Engadget, the verge and the missing remote? The issue is that a lot of people don't know about jriver. If you send something to these companies please make sure you focus on showing the the tv 10 foot ui. UI eye candy is what drive speople to a media center product at the beginning. (It's a bit like what attracts most people to an initial love interest)

With this being done during the holiday shopping season where folks are trying not to spend extra cash it will be tough as well. I do believe there's a strong market for this (as proven during silicon dust Kickstarter campaign), but the market needs to be aware of the product you are potential going to offer.    

[greynolds]

Jim and JRiver team,

Did you guys try to send some PR releases to Engadget, the verge and the missing remote? The issue is that a lot of people don't know about jriver. If you send something to these companies please make sure you focus on showing the the tv 10 foot ui. UI eye candy is what drive speople to a media center product at the beginning. (It's a bit like what attracts most people to an initial love interest)

I sent a message to the Missing Remote early on and they posted a blurb about it:

http://www.missingremote.com/news/2015-11-22/another-copy-once-cablecard-player-dips-toe

It would have been nice if the titled mentioned JRiver Media Center though...

With this being done during the holiday shopping season where folks are trying not to spend extra cash it will be tough as well. I do believe there's a strong market for this (as proven during silicon dust Kickstarter campaign), but the market needs to be aware of the product you are potential going to offer.    

Agreed, this is a tough time of year.  There's also a bunch of people who feel they got burned by the SD Kickstarter up to this point who may be reluctant to donate to another project.

[yeanay]

I thought I was in. But just read the privacy policy for Kickstarter. No thanks. When this product comes out, I'll definitely buy it. Good luck.

[greynolds]

But just read the privacy policy for Kickstarter. No thanks.

Ok, I'll bite - what was it about the privacy policy you don't like?  I just looked through it and don't see anything that's unreasonable.

[trajanmcgill]

I agree it would be a really good and important thing to somehow provide enticement for existing owners to go in at a higher level. I don't need any more licenses for the full product, and that is probably going to be true of 90% of your supporters, so you are pushing the potential contributions down by making the "suggested" amount really low for your most loyal fans.

Also, you say if you can't get a few thousand to buy it it might not be worth doing, but remember that "there aren't 4000 willing buyers for the product" is nowhere near the same thing as "there aren't 4000 willing buyers who happened to come across a particular kickstarter campaign in a particular 30-day period." Plus, the general attractiveness of your software goes up across the board for everyone in the United States once this is complete, so lots of people are only likely to enter the potential customer or supporter base _after_ this project is completed.

I'm not sure what the incentives could be, though. How about, say, early access to the new feature as a beta tester? I'm sure others on here might have ideas, as well.

I kicked in an extra $10 for now, but will put in extra if you get close but are in danger of not quite succeeding.

(BTW, I love that somebody apparently donated to this project just so he could follow you wherever you pop up anywhere in the world and attempt to trash you for making scientifically supported recommendations about what software to use alongside MC. A little bit maniacal, but I guess he gave money to the project in order to be able to add those comments, so whatever.)

[trajanmcgill]

Also, I almost totally missed that this campaign existed. I got the marketing email that went out this morning, but ignored it because I already own an MC21 license, and the subject and first half of the email made no mention of this and seemed to be focused on buying a product I already owned. A lot of other recipients probably did exactly the same thing. I only caught this because I happened to come to the forums today for other reasons. I know you use the email list sparingly (and I am glad of that), but you might really consider sending out an email just devoted to this kickstarter campaign, especially with only 10 days remaining.

[JimH]

Thanks.  The mailings are always a mix of news and sales.  Kickstarter is a part of the sales side.

I realize that people get a lot of mail asking them to buy.  We try to find a balance, but it's not always right for everyone.

[JimH]

(BTW, I love that somebody apparently donated to this project just so he could follow you wherever you pop up anywhere in the world and attempt to trash you for making scientifically supported recommendations about what software to use alongside MC. A little bit maniacal, but I guess he gave money to the project in order to be able to add those comments, so whatever.)

Yeah, but WE have his dollar now.