The DEB Log: Cable Boxes and Persistence of Vision, Part Deux

I wrote a while back about cable boxes and the ways Comcast could present commercials even when fast forwarding through a show. The persistence of vision idea certainly doesn't make it easy for them, and assumes they're displaying the ad on their own cable box. I thought of a few more ways they could cheaply advertise.

When you're fast forwarding, the sound stops - you can watch the picture go by, but you can't hear anything. Since the audio isn't being used at this time, Comcast could play a short audio message. It would stop when you stopped fast forwarding. It could figure out what you're watching and customize the message for you. For example, if you’re watching “Lost”, an overwrought, entirely confusing drama that takes place on an island, there might be a quick audio message “See Gilligan’s Island reruns on TNT, weekdays at 4 pm”. If you’re watching Desperate Housewives, you’d get “Bovine Flu hits Michigan – story at 11 on Action News”.

Another idea that would allow them to show little ads all the time would be to put a small logo or ad at the right or left of the bar that displays when you're playing, pausing, fast forwarding, or doing something else. Since that bar already takes up space at the bottom of the screen, they could fill it in a little more with (say) the Best Buy logo or a picture of Bart Simpson next to the Fox logo.

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I bought some pretzels at work the other day because I needed a snack. The pretzels are the only relatively healthy thing in the vending machine. Since I was hungry, I was hoping to get a good-sized bag. But in my wildest dreams I never imagined that the pretzel company made a size just for me! Hungry Size! How lucky can a guy get?