If this takes place all I will do is DVR EVERYTHING then skip thru all ads PERIOD...when did we giveup our rights to BIG BROTHER...NEVER !!!!!! If this were to take place, the ad's that are frozen should be under a consumer alert that we comsumer will BOYCOTT any product they produce or distribute !!!! Maybe the message is that TV is becoming BIG BROTHER and we all need to STOP the MADDNESS and throw the boxes out !!!

I don't like it. I think it is time to send Philips a message by boycotting their products.

I would never by another phillips product in my life and recommend the same to anyone I saw on a daily basis!

I would turn off my TV before I would allow someone to control when I can change channels. When TV began there were only a few minutes per hour set aside for "messages from our sponsor". Today there is almost as much time spent on ads as there is on programming. I suspect that in the future it will get to the point where there are only a few minutes of program every hour with the rest dedicated to commercials. At that point, pull the plug.

You got to be kidding. Are they going to strap us down and pry our eyes open next. Yes, some commercials are torture. Maybe if they give up gasoline vouchers for watching commercials I can agree to this. Bribes do work for the gas industry in our government

What will they try next, prevent us from turning off the TV??? The shows or broadcasters that implement that ad channel freezing technology should take heed from now that the consumers will not tolerate this. We'll go back to reading books and newspapers, and buying the DVD movies that we want, rather than put up with having to pay more to NOT have to watch ads on TV. We're paying too much already for TV (Cable, Satellite), when advertisers are already paying to be on there, too. Whether we choose to watch those ads or not should be our choice, not mandated by some broadcaster or advertiser, just like it's our choice to watch certain shows, nor not. The more broadcasters and advertisers try to shove their material down our throats, so to speak, the more we consumers will resist it and outright boycott all products from those companies that do implement that technology, if need be. That ad channel freezing technology should be shelved! Enough is enough!

It appears to me that there may still be a reason to keep that old VCR afterall. You can bet if Phillips can control changing channels, they may also have the ability control fast forward on a DVR. You can always fast forward thru tape. If this product comes to market, Phillips will not see another nickle of my money towards any more of their products.

Simple solution to this is don't purchase any product with this feature installed and soon enough it will be removed from the market (if it ever makes it there to begin with). To be honest, sometimes I actually wish for something like this, because everytime I'm watching a program at home, when the commercials come on, my wife or son start flipping the channels and by the time they remember to get back to my program, I've missed something. But, I digress. No, it's not something that the public truly wants or needs. It's a feature that only advertisors could truly support, and even then, they may not want too, because while their ads are playing on one station, the viewer's are locked onto another station, forced to watch a competitor's ad.

Actually Sophia, they've already done that to a point by removing all buttons and controls from the modern TV itself, and made the remote control small enough that if you misplace it, you'll never find it again and you will be forced to keep your TV on with the channel locked until you unplug it from the wall.

Thinking outside the box here, Philips could be onto something.. Such as Free T.V.s as long as you agree not to change the commercials. What is important is that they give the offering not to have this feature on the t.v. Maybe people would watch the commercials if they were good and not so loud. I change the set immediatly when a loud commerical comes on. It is very annoying! Also... They should really look at the content.. for example.. Most people talk about the Superbowl commericals vs. the big plays for the Superbowl.

Another example of why people are no damned good and they care nothing about anyone else but themselves. When is that asteroid coming to blow everyone off the face of this stinking earth? Maybe Philips should join with the damn spam senders so we can get spam on our TV - they're all scum. Screw Philips and screw all the marketing people in the world - and the spammers - and the lawyers - and the bankers - and the FDA - and all the drug companies. This world should be sent straight to hell. I'm fed up!!!

We, the masses, cannot do anything about the price of gasoline (thanks a lot gov't), but we can always avoid Philips products like the plague. There are too many other companies to go to (at least for now).

The general tenor of the postings here seems to be that we have a "right" not to watch commercials. That is true of course, but few people think of the consequences. Like it or not, in the end, these programs that have commercials exist ONLY because some businesses pay for the production, air time, and a profit for the broadcasters through the value of their commercials. Do you think more than 5% of these programs would exist if the value of advertising on them declined to zero because advertisers could not expect their messages to be seen? Most companies have recognized already that TV advertising is losing its cost/return relationship. The wireless remote, VCR, and, now TiVo have diminished the worth of spending millions on TV commercials. This is why we get so much spam, pop-ups, junk snail mail, and are bombarded by all those signs and banners everywhere. The day 50% or more of TV viewers have TiVo is the day there will be nothing to watch on the free channels. Yes, you pay $50 a month for cable, but that does not go towards programming. There could be a day when the only channels that you do not have to pay $10 a month each to see, will be Home Shopping Network and the like.

The masses will not utter a bleat they are led like lemmings through inescapable ads for wonder pills that the commercials don't even explain what wonders they perform. The masses are cow/sheep/lemmings! Please excuse the multiply mixed metaphor. I predict the gauntlet will be thrown, Phillips will make money, advertisers will be happy, broadcasters will be indifferent and consumers will consume. For us, it will be one more stupid idea to hack past.

If this system requires them to put something into the broadcast stream to indicate where the beginning and ending of commercials are, then non-compliant open source programs like MythTV could detect that signal and accurately -skip- the commercials without having to rely on heuristic methods such as blank frames and detection of the network logo to detect commercials (that doesn't always work).

That would spell certain death for television. Does this mean that if an infomercial comes on I have to wait for the entire half hour commercial to end so I can flip to another channel? And does their process stop on every channel you are flipping through when it detects a commercial? Suppose I start watching a show and after a few minutes decide I don't like it. By the time I find my remote, a commercial starts. I have to wait for the 5 minutes of commercials before I can change? Then, when I am finally able to flip to the next channel suppose they just started their commercial block. Will I have to wait for these to end just to jump to the next channel? The show I want to see could be over by the time I am able to get to it if I flip through several channes.

George Orwell would cringe. This ia an abomination of biblical proportions. Individual's right are shriveling up right before our eyes. These people should be tarred and feathered and put in the pokey for a year or two, simply for thinking about such an intrusion into our homes and private lives. We had better put a stop to such travesties before we wind up having to raise our hands before we can go to the head in our own houses. Phillips bought RCA and Magnavox just to mention a couple of American companies that these weasels have obliterated. I'm so pissed that I don't even want to think about taking Phillips Milk of Magnesia. ...no connection, I know. (I'm proud of myself for not using the profanity that was on the tip of my tongue and the tips of my fingers.)

I am so tired of ads anyway at my relatively late stage of life that I do all I can to avoid them anyway. I may get DVR, but if they control that, I'll simply do what I do now--record all network programs on VCR--remember that technology? Still works. They can't control skipping through the ads that way. That leaves only sports, and I've gotten used to that. With every inning change or TV timeout during a game I always have something else to do or read and pay no attention to the ads anyway. Bring it on!!

Didn't you publish this piece a litte late? Wasn't it supposed to appear on April 1 ?

I am immediaely beginning a boycott of all Philips products and will spread the word. This is an unbelievable idea that needs to be stopped NOW!

This did NOT start with TIVO, and it will not end with Phillips. People are greedy, and will try to wring out every last penny if they can. We need a FREE MARKET system that people can CHOOSE products from. Cable companies, phone companies, etc. don't want this. More choices, not fewer choices, will yield the best value for consumers!

Small problem. Suppose inclement weather is rapidly approaching the viewing area. You'd like to flip to the Weather Channel or your local TV news, but you can't. Are they going to program in the ability to have the system understand that there are weather issues and that you can suddenly switch the channel in the middle of the commercial? I know this is a worst-case scenario, but if a local warning for something like Katrina comes on the news, and everybody is frozen through commercials, is Phillips prepared to liable for any damages that occur? Grandma can't get to the evacuation bus as it was Metamucil and Depends commercial time on Murder She Wrote. Bring back cassette tapes, VCRs and antennas.

Somebody was going to do it...who cares that it's Phillips. The people to boycott are the ones that make use of it...the TV networks and their advertisers. All this does is enable them to capture part of the cable $$ share, which we, as consumers, have made look very lucrative by paying more and more each year. ...Maybe the people to boycott are the cable companies until their fees are lowered to the point where Phillips patent has no value.

We have a free market...we can choose to pay the asking price for entertainment, or not. We, as consumers, have so much power with our money, we just have to use it.

We buy products that decode signals. If those signals are broadcast via a modulated wave, we can get away with paying nothing for decoding the signal. If the signal is broadcast via a cable, we pay for the connection to the cable (which we still need to decode somehow). We (typically) have not paid for content. If that content enforces some rule that our decoders translate into "YOU HAVE NO CONTROL OF YOUR TV SET," that is not a right that we have lost. We didn't purchase that right. Don't be foolish enough to purchase a decoder that enables this function. Or just buy a decoder that can be hacked!

Every now and then one runs across something like this that simply causes a shake of the head and an immediate "You've got to be sh***ing me!" comment. All I want to know is, how does a company as big as Philips come up with an idea as lame as this and expect that anyone with half a brain will buy into it? Unless every TV manufacturer on the planet is either stupid enough to license the technology or they're somehow forced to adopt it due to some new lame-brain FCC regulation, I can't believe that Philips will be selling many TVs in the future. Fact is, the more I sit here and think about it, the more I'm simply in awe of just how nitwitted the braintrusts of some companies can be. It is simply baffling beyond thought. Here's hoping all the mutual fund managers are paying attention; Philips' stock has got to tank with this one...

Can you imagine life without Channel Surfing! Isn't Channel Surfing built into the Male DNA somewhere? Oh the backlash if Men cannot Channel Surf.

Personally, if I am forced to watch ads, then I shall boycott any product that chooses to advertise that way. It actually raises another question, though...the ads pay for the programs...and we have a choice of watching the ads or not. If that choice is removed, then perhaps the companies advertising should pay us for the priviledge of being held captive???

Wow - I'm amazed at the amount of comments here. I was hoping to get a reaction to this! The general consensus here is to boycott Philips, and that seems like the only possible solution for this not to take place. First, I thought maybe Philips wanted to be the first to have the patent on this type of controlled TV ad viewing, but from what I've read on the Web, I think Philips is seriously considering this. Here are some responses to commentors: Hal Hudler: It does seem like commercials have taken over our TV programming. We're lucky if we get to watch 45 minutes of a show in an hour time-slot. I realize that we need advertising; I'm not knocking that. But, it is getting a bit ridiculous now, especially when we have to see product placements IN our shows, such as The Loop and The Office. Will the length of shows disintegrate over time? It's sad, but will probably happen. Rich: Bribe attempts sure would help...but that would never happen. Robert Koch: I own a VCR/DVD combo, and will definitely not get rid of it anytime soon. Our VCRs may come in handy after all to avoid this type of technology. Mike B: I was wondering the same thing as you. What if we're watching a show, and realize that we'd rather watch something else, but can't switch the channel? Then we'd have to not only subject ourselves to that show, but also the commercials? How long into the show would we have to be until the channel is locked? And what if a friend calls you up, saying to turn on the news about a breaking story, but you can't because of the locked channel? Or what if you watch two shows during the same time frame (I flip from Lost to American Idol every Wednesday)? Will you not be allowed to change the channel in this case either? The interesting thing is, why doesn't Philips have anything about this pending patent on their site? We want DETAILS!!!

I just won't watch tv anymore. Shut it off and never turn it back on again. Basically what I do now is I have my computer on, and listen to tv while i am on the computer, and lately i have done alot of reading and when i am watching a show and a commercial comes on, I pick up my book for the 5 minutes of commercials and read a couple pages, you would be amazed at how much reading you can get done that way. All those commercials really add up :)

I gave up on TV when my cable bill went above $25. I can read, I have the internet, I can even use the old CRT + DVD player to watch rented movies. I think Phillips has found an exellent means of weaning others off 'the tube'. For those who still can't break free... well, I pity your enslavement, but I'm sure glad its you and not me;)

Commercials are the reason i don't watch more tv than i do -- if i am prevented from changing channels during commercial, i would never turn on the tv. I would unplug my set, throw it into the street, or better yet give it to someone i don't like.

Sheesh! Just add the drugs (I'm sure the Drug Giants will queue up to help) and Viola! Clockwork Orange's Ludovico Technique becomes a reality! But are you really surprised? Even though subliminal advertising is supposedly illegal, it's pervasive and nothing is done about it. This new technology is just another step toward the restraint chair and eyes-forced-open tools. Tune out!

I would imagine that the Company that did not have this AD blocking would get rich. The company that put Ad blocking in their product would go bankrupt.

If Phillips wants to control whether or not I see an ad, they had better be ready to pay me for my time. That's what it has to come to, the consumer being paid to watch the ads, not the carrier. My home is not any different than any other DVR equipped household, rarely (if ever) do we watch live TV - College Football is about the only exception! We fast forward through commercials, letting us watch a 60 minute show in about 43 minutes - we save 15 minutes of OUR time that we can put back into the daily time bank for something else. I will not be forced to watch something. I will stop watching shows that force the viewer to watch commercials. Bye bye, so long, see ya! I don't care what it is, if I am forced to watch commercials, I will not watch it. Come on Phillips, I'm sure you can find another way to make money, maybe you could produce something a consumer would want, instead of something they don't. Don't be like the oil companies, give us something, of value, for our hard earned money.

If Philips wants to pursue this boycott their products.....also find out who in Washington would support this?

Could someone please list all companies or products that Phillips controls? I also am in favor of boycott starting NOW.

Here's what I found quickly for you, Diana G: Philips USA has five product divisions, according to their Web site: Consumer Electronics (3rd largest in the world for digital TV systems and CD applications); Domestic Appliances & Personal Care (male shaving and grooming, body & beauty, food & beverage, oral care); Lighting; Medical Systems and Semiconductors (for wireless communications, computing, digital entertainment).

It's like birth control, folks: the only certain means of prevention is abstention. I hardly ever watch TV anymore, and when I do, it's usually a movie I've purchased or (rarely) rented. I can read, work on various projects, surf the net, spend time with my family... For those who feel soooo strongly about this subject, simply stop watching. Sheesh--it's not like anyone is forcing you to watch the mesmeric box in the first place. Boycott all you like, but if you truly want to register your opinion, quit watching in the first place.

I still have a couple of VCRs. I'll just tape everything I care about seeing, then fast-forward through the commercials and boycott the company trying to force-feed me it's advertisements.

What next. Are they going to put in a power control switch that won't let you turn the set off either? Perhaps we should give up all the electronic components and go back to the old antenna systems. No V-chips, control chips or other forms of mind (and wallet) control.

Turn off the idiot box, and go outside.

If this happens we all should boycott Philips products as well as those products whose ads are forced upon us. What happens when the ads go on for 5 to 10 minutes straight as they do on Jeopardy just brfore the final answer is given. Will turning the set off and then on again alllow a channel change? Maybe it's time to stop watching TV and start talking to each other again!! Perhaps Philips has an alterior motive for this new technology: Patent the process but not use it so no one else can implement it!

If this comes about the only answer is to boycott Phillips (Easy) and any and all Ad Sponsors who utilize the technology.

I bought a DVD sometime ago and can't recall the title but I do remember that I could not forward the Warning for FBI since a long time now but now they do it too with even some publicity right in the F...k..g that I have bought. No warning on the outside package that some publicity were included with the DVD I bought and no control aloud in it until the movie start. Did anyone of you have same experience with some DVD Title offer on the market recently?

I agree with the general feeling: If they succeed with this I will turn off TV, which I rarely watch because of the mindlessness of it now, and switch entirely to DVDs. As for Phillips products: not in my house, not in my RV, not in my world!

Please read the release yourself. The patent does not just force you to watch ads. Blame the reporter May Wong or her editors for coming up with this sensationalist headline.

Yup, it's the start of Clockwork Orange. The chip actually holds your eyes open and forces you to watch ads. Arrggh, the horror of it all.

Hopefully, TV broadcasters will heed the lesson radio broadcasting learned (the hard way) when they totally and shamelessly abused us...we, the ones with discressionary funds...you know, the ones commercials are designed to influence...are willing to pay for diverse content, especially when it's commercial free...ever hear of satellite radio!

One thing is for sure: if Philips ever succeeds in implementing this technology, I wll never, EVER, buy or recommend a Philips product of any sort again.

It's news like this that makes me glad that I'm still using analog VCR's and non-digital cable. If I had a product like this that would hold me hostage like this, I would pull the plug from the wall to FORCE it to turn off, then turn it back on a minute later. QUESTION: If you're using the tuner in a VCR/DVR instead of that in the TV, will you still be able to change the channel???

And what will they do about sets with P.I.P?

I did some research into this subject and on Phillips patent pending areas. It surely looks like Phillips is trying to patent this to block it from becoming in use by others in the industry. Maybe years down the road it may be useful but right now it seems that with a Phillips patent being granted this will stop this from being jammed down the TV viewers throats. What next a video camera in your TV so the government can watch everything you do at home? Right now my TV does not change channels as my DVR does that so that means Phillips if they wanted to succeed would have to enlist my DVR company and that would cost them plenty.

What is the fuss? We haven't had a TV for a year now, and as soon as we don't know what to do with ourselves, we will consider buying one again. Philips might just do the world a favour, by killing of the biggest drug the world has ever seen!! There is in any case a large movement away from broadcasting towards narrow-casting. While I don't believe this patent will ever be implemented, If it does, it will just accelerate the trend towads narrowcasting.

We watch too much TV anyway so this should prompt everyone to switch the box off and switch on to God and your family. Lets get our priorities right and take control of our life. Nuff said!

here is the address for philips webmaster - http://www.feedback.philips.com/consumer/?country=&language=en¶m1=webmaster and here is what I submitted - your plan to patent and use channel locking to prevent switching chanels during ads will result in my boycotting your products and the products of any advertiser that forces me to watch their advertisment. If enough of us protest by letting them know we will boycott their customers and themselves perhaps we can change their mind.

here is the address of philllips webmaster - http://www.feedback.philips.com/consumer/?country=&language=en¶m1=webmaster here is what I posted - your plan to patent and use channel locking to prevent switching chanels during ads will result in my boycotting your products and the products of any advertiser that forces me to watch their advertisment. If everyone opposed to the concept let phillips know how they would react perhaps other manufactures will not try the same tactic.

Thanks for the heads up. Guess I wm't be buying any Phillips equipment!!!

I went to film school and we learned how to manipulate. Even our best and brightest said they LIKED commercials because of the high production standards and creativity. I think if advertisers make their commercials fun then people will watch them. Think of the SuperBowl. If they try to make us watch them, aside from the fact that the production values will go down (why put money into something people will have to watch regardless?) then we'll just weigh the value of the show vs the misery of the commercials and probably turn off the tube.

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Didn't these guys read 1984? It's not just wrong or crappy, it's downright disgusting. I understand that adverts are less effective as time goes on, but that's because most sane people hate being brainwashed.. Why not look at alternatives rather than trying to force people to percieve something they don't want just to equalise your tax budget.. What a horrendously evil idea.

Phillps has developed an anti-channel changing during commercials chip! So what? Today's TVs are connected via s-video or componet video to the cable box, TViO box, DVR box, whatever. They won't have a Phillps chip for quite a while (if ever). Frankly, today's HDTV sets are an iffy proposition to even HAVE a tuner, so why worry? Much ado about nothing. bob

Patents are supposed to be USEFUL - This sounds dumber than anything Philips has ever done.

I don't understand why everyone gets upset by this. Will anyone buy this type of TV and if they do (out of ignorance) they will return it the next day. But people don't seem to get to upset by the Blu-Ray/HD-DVD. It is more draconian and has more requirements and is just as bad, but because the marketing teams are better they are actually convincing people that buying an almost imperceptible quality increase over the current DVD standard is worth giving total control of the player to the manufactuers and the studios.

I suggest we let Phillips apply for that patent. It's a very expensive process, so let them waste money on it. Then, we can see their sales plummet, as consumers will surely turn their backs on them. What a stupid move from Phillips' part!

This could be a good thing as it will make me not buy any more TVs. Think of the time now wasted that could be better spent elsewhere.

You would think that PHILIPS would have learned something from the SONY faux pau rather than further insult the consumer.

You would think that PHILIPS would have learned something from the SONY faux pau rather than further insult the consumer.

It truly amazes me how rediculous corporations can be. Why don't they just demand better quality commercials? There are some commercials that are quite good and I like to see. Of course, these are few and far between. I'm all for boycotting a company that would pursue such an asinine idea.

I heard they were also working on a patent that includes a magnetic chair and metal pants so you can't get up and go to the bathroom during commercials. Soon after will come special goggles that you have to wear while watching TV and the goggles will prevent you from closing your eyes during commercials.

How much will Phillips pay consumers to take one of their TV's?

Not only is this one of the mose boneheaded ideas that I have heard in years, it will prove to be the beginning of the end for DRM. I think that when faced with products and/or technology like this, the full-scale consumer revolution will begin in force. The average consumer is growing increasingly fed up with corporations "telling" us what to do an how to do it. This may well be the straw that broke the camels back. Count me in for the boycott!!!!

Oh man, this has to be the most pathetic (this can't be legal or consitutional in some say) thing I have ever heard of. No way this can be legal to do. To even suggest this kind of thing is a joke. My God how about a chip that completely TAKES "OUT" mind-sucking commercials. I will never buy "anything" Phillips again -- they will reap their pathetic idea very soon. How much you want to be their stock will go DOWN. Unreal!!! I'm totally digusted.

Oh man, this has to be the most pathetic (this can't be legal or consitutional in some say) thing I have ever heard of. No way this can be legal to do. To even suggest this kind of thing is a joke. My God how about a chip that completely TAKES "OUT" mind-sucking commercials. I will never buy "anything" Phillips again -- they will reap their pathetic idea very soon. How much you want to be their stock will go DOWN. Unreal!!! I'm totally digusted.

Just turn off the idiot boxes and do something productive.I stopped watching TV 11 years ago and I can say I haven't missed it at all.Instead of watching I renovated my basement taught my children how to mountain bike and just had fun.Give it up!!!

Wow - why didn't I think of this? I have been off of cable for twenty years for the exact same reason - why do people pay the cable company to watch advertisements anyway? I bet I get 2 pieces of junk mail every week from each cable company - and have been for 20 years. They wouldn't send this much junk mail unless they were convinced that eventually they would get me to sign up. So the TV-drug pushers feel that they can now get you to go to the next drug level - you can stay TV-high if you pay up in the commercial watching!

Philips just went to the absolute bottom of my list of companies I will ever buy from. They can back pedal all they want but this is the kind of proposal that we as consumers need to punish companies for even thinking of. Let's face it, this type of mentality will pretty much disapper if the people making such proposals get fired because of public reaction.

I was a fan of their products. I bought my son a tv of theirs just 2 years ago, and thought it was high quality for the low price. My tv set is 16.5 yrs old. Unless Phillips reconsiders this folly, they certainly will not get any of my money. Just for fun, I will make a copy of the check for my next tv, and send it to them as a little reminder of what this patent costs them.

When it needs to change channels and the current program is in a "protected" Commercial?

They can't be serious. I watch to the end of a show, the commercial comes on, I try to change to another program on another channel and I can't. What brainless idiot dreampt this up.

IT'S A DUMB IDEA. NOT ONLY WILL I NOT BUY A PHILIPS TV UNIT, BUT WILL SEEK OTHER PHILIPS PRODUCTS AND LIKEWISE NOT BUY THOSE!!!!!

So what is the chip going to do different from what is happening now? With my cable service [Bresnan] nearly all the channels I receive on Extended Basic have their commercials timed to coincide with all the other channels, so it does no good to surf except to ones like TCM/Turner Classic Movies that have no commercials at all.

Some DVDs already force commercials on us by not letting you fast forward thru the "coming attractions" section or go straight to the menu. I'd personally like to see that outlawed as well as any chips like the chip Philips is proposing. However, it's all about money in Washington and we all know about the Golden Rule, right? (Whoever has the gold makes the rules.)

This makes me wish I hadn't just purchased a RCA combo TV/DVD/CD/VCR that I believe is a Philips product. We have TIVO, but it records things we aren't even subscribed to, resulting in BLANK programs! While it does that, it prevents us from recording what we asked it to. HAL revisited? I think our choices are being taken away from us is and the whole thing is out-of-control!

Philips might just as well have paid big bucks for a full page ad saying, "We really don't like you, Mr. and Ms. Consumer, and we could care less what you think, and we've just come up with a new way of showing you just how much contempt we have for you." I would buy a used TV at a yard sale before I would give Philips one thin dime of my hard earned money.

Yet another intrusion into our lives by the "marketing" community. We are already bombarded by constant advertising, be it print/media ads, billboard busses or the pervasive half hour blocks of "paid programming" that invade the cable and satellite channels, that I thought "I" was already paying for! We have become nothing more than targets for anyone with something to sell, be it useful or not. To think that these marketing wizards are now trying to control my choice of what I can watch and when I'll be allowed to stop watching it is simply unacceptable. I can assure them that if implemented, I won't be replacing my current equipment when it dies. I'll just find another form of entertainment that allows me the freedom to start and stop at will. Perhaps if enough people refuse to allow these advertisers ever increasing attempts to dictate their agendas to the masses, we can send the message loud and clear (by way of lost dollars, the only thing they understand) that we are the ones who truly are in control.

The way I see it, ya vote with your MONEY. How many models will Phillips make if those with the anti-channel-changing feature just do NOT sell? This almost sounds like an April Fool kind of joke!

I have no problem with not purchasing products made by Phillips. However, in good concious, I will not avoid their medical products. Some of those products may one day save your life. Plus, if you are out cold on the operating room table, how would you know what products the surgeon used?

I still remember when CATV started and it did not have ads because the monthly payment we (viewers) made subsidised it. Later on the cable industry managed to include the ads as a "normal" feature and sometimes they are amore than 30% of the program we are trying to watch. Even TiVo came with a crooky idea to prevent commercial skipping a while ago. Nowadays the music industry does not allow a person who legally purchased a CD to play it in their computers let alone transfer to a MP3 player. The new High Definition DVDs will force people to upgrade their TVs if they want to watch high-def movies just because of copy-protection and digital rights crooky excuses. So, it would not surprise me that the so called "entertainment" industry will eventually force people to not only watch commercials but also buy the crap they advertise.

Wow wouldn't you have loved to be a bug on the wall when the management team came up with this idea. There has to be a rest of the story to this great invention. What innovative geniuses. Product obsolescence is so apparent customers will no longer need to buy the product. What's next a chip that only allows commercials to be displayed?.

She doesn't like me flipping channels. She's probably the one who told Phillips to get me to stop. :-P

And after they implement this they will wonder why the popularity of ripped (recorded, edited, then put up for download on your favorite P2P network) tv shows skyrockets...

It'll be a cold day in hell when I buy a TV with this chip in it

One word. CONSTITUTION! No matter how much money any corporation has they will lose once it goes there. Hey Phillips, just check out this long list of negative responses, or how many people are pulling the plug on the net because advertisers have gone insane cramming unwanted messages down thier throats! Not since AOL tried to regulate it's customers when the first On-line Communication Decency Act was being drafted and they lost so many customers by accusing the poor people in the Breast Cancer support groups of indecency if the word "breast" was in thier messages. People change channels not just because 5 minutes of commercials must be used to pay the electric bill but because the show they were waiting for is now on! Don't just write your congress or Phillips let the advertisers and the studios know. If people start dropping the cable, satillite, tivo & even the antanae from forced COMERCIAL DICTATORSHIP well French, Russian, American revolution... but then big business knows no stupidity that greed can't push past common sense.

Hang on a minute....I agree with Chuck. If they can build a chip to detect the start/stop of a commercial, that implies some sort of signal. (Yes, we all know that it is a sudden increase of volume.) If they start sending this signal - I have not heard anyone say it is already there - than I bet some sharp techie out there could easily invent some sort of device to turn the volume off if the channel is kept on, AND allow channel changing (with the volume back on). Every cloud has a silver lining.

I watch about 3 hours of TV/week. I guess its time to cut those out also. Oh well....

And the headline reads"100 YRS AGO TODAY,large electronics manufacturer, PHILLIPS went the way of the dinosaur after the introduction of their revolutionary 'HANDCUFF CHIP' singlehandedly ending the the era of "free tv" and simultaneuosly ushering in the resurgance of BOOKS & NEWSPAPERS". But seriously, although this could happen, what is more likely is the end of the 6$ figure ad-exec careers now so common. How much are you worth when creativity in advertising is no longer a factor? It sounds backward but I'll actually watch a good commercial.I even have a copy of Fedex's superbowl ad "stick" on my desktop (for whenever I need a good laugh!)...Peace!

PROOF POSITIVE THAT DRUG USE IS ALIVE AND WELL IN THE CORPORATE WORLD!!!!!!! Next big thing will be the TV that cooks crack and fills your bedroom with crack-smoke while you are sleeping!...YEE HA!!

This "feature" would certainly cause me to NOT buy my next product from Philips. I can't believe their marketing group is this stupid!

When did Phillips become the FCC. Controling what we see and hear. That is the purpose of a tuner so we can change to another channel so we can see and hear what we want. I do not want to hear about the latest femine hygine product or some guy that needs drugs to get it up. If they persue this they may as well close their doors as a lot of people will stop buying their products. Hell Sony has already tried a simular tatic with cd's what makes them think they will be able to get away with this.

When did Phillips become the FCC. Controling what we see and hear. That is the purpose of a tuner so we can change to another channel so we can see and hear what we want. I do not want to hear about the latest femine hygine product or some guy that needs drugs to get it up. If they persue this they may as well close their doors as a lot of people will stop buying their products. Hell Sony has already tried a simular tatic with cd's what makes them think they will be able to get away with this.

For me at least, TV is dead anyway: news, weather, economy can be viewed via Internet from a variety of sources. movies: sooner or later downloadable as is music today other entertainment crap (CSI, ET etc) - a waste of time anyway What the Phillips (they make Magnavox also) chip might do is to be manadatory in "free TV's" - yup, get a free TV if you will watch our sponsors ads. Obviously, the consumers who actually buy the advertized crap pay a part of the cost.

Philips is renowned as an innovator, and personally I wouldn't boycott their entire product range based on a patent. If they actually ever incorporated this into product (which I can't ever see happening, it'd be tantamount to commercial suicide) I would certainly boycott the said product. 10 points for being an innovator -100 points for social conscience C.

Guess I'll just have to do what I now do when a commercial comes on--read teh newspaper, book, or magazine of the moment, continue working my e-mail or what ever other task I am doing on the computer, go to the kitchen, whatever. If I am watching a particular show that I care about, I am watching the show and not channel surfing. Just because I cannot change the channel during a commercial does not mean I am watching the commercial.

Is Philips really that stupid. Didn't they learn anything from the Sony fiasco?

This will be a very interesting time. They may even roll out these set top boxes. But they will own the patent and no one else will be able to use it without a fee. With all the bad press, other companies (who already run the entire electronics industry down) will probably decide NOT to pay. Then Phillips will be the only company licensed to use the product. When Phillips corp starts to slide into oblivion, Congress will try to boost Phillips by passing a law requiring the chip in all set top boxes. That Congress will NOT be reelected but the damage will be done. We will all be required to say at least once a day: I Love Big Brother.

Sony! Sony! Sony!

2 words Phillips - GET STUFFED!!

Bob is right. At first I was upset, then I thought about where the tuners for my TVs actually are. TIVO, Digital Cable Box, etc. I don't even use a TV, I use a projector. There will always be alternatives for tuners that wont implement this technology. Small cheap sets probably wont due to cost. As far as Phillips go, I don't buy their stuff anyway. Knock yourself out. However, if you think consumers are dumb enough that they can't or wont revolt. Two words. Sony rootkit.

...recommending Sony over Philips. Some Sony products install virus-prone rootkits on your PC without your knowledge or consent to monitor DRM compliance, and they're difficult to remove. I'm -already- boycotting Sony products over this issue.

Let the market decide and it will. If Phillips, Magnovox and Panasonic all put these &%#$ things in their TVs and Sony does not, Sony will sell more TVs. Someone will see market in opting out of this technology. Can you imagine the nightmare Phillips is inviting itself? Picture, if you will, the overloaded call center as people bring home thier new TVs only discover that it is "broken". It only switches channels some of the time! Even better can you imagine the screams from the retailers as people try to return these things. Are they handing out those funny little cigerettes in board meetings over at Phillips?

I think this is Phillips "jump the shark" moment. They may never recover from this type of lunacy.

Philips has to have lost it's mind. IT isn't bad enough that I have to pay for TV (cable) while the companies are ALSO making money on the commercials, but now they want to force me to watch them. I tolerated having to pay for non-premium channels on cable, because: a) I have no choice b) I can change the channel. FYI...my definition of premium = no commercials which means the program is paid for by the commercials between movies and cable fees (don't get me started). If they manage to get the patent and the networks to signup, I'll just turn the TV off and back on and change the channel. I'll find a way around it and I will not be purchasing a Philips brand ANYTHING if they start using this. Hey if they want to patent something for commercials, why don't they do something useful and have v-chip for commercials, so that I can decide if I want to block inappropriate commercials from showing. I was watching a martial arts movie late at night with my young daughter (she was not feeling well and couldn't sleep) then all of the sudden a commercial for 'Girls gone stupid' comes on and I have to flip quick and try to explain to a 5 year old how come the 'girls were pulling off their tops' ....

This idea hits the bottom as far as consumer sensitivity is concerned. Phillips should be looking for ways to improve its sales by adding desirable features, rather than kissing the boots of the broadcasting corporations. I will now NEVER consider purchasing any Phillips products, because they have demonstrated that they clearly are NOT on MY side!!

With the current administration, doesn't matter what consumers do. Phillips will just lobby Congress to make their chip the law. Need proof, consider the Digital Rights Managment Act of 2003.

I can't remember the last time I even considered buying a Phillips TV anyway. Now I just have a definite reason not to, well besides the fact that Phillips makes low end lousy electronics.

I don't see how this is any different than DRM, which we will have forced on us soon for virtually all digital content. May as well get used to it. (As previously posted, we have it already in FBI warnings that can't be skipped on DVDs)

This is a TERRIBLE idea. Fortunately we do have the means to resist! If they actually introduce this, I will never buy another Phillips product again. As a responsible adult, no entity has the right to dictate my viewing habits.

They can never stop you from turning off the tv. All you have to do is pull the plug or flip the switch on your power strip :) Unless the evil bastards came up with a way to cache 30 seconds worth of energy to keep the tv going for that time. Damn I got a headache now.

In their mis-guided attempt to revolutionize the television/commercial watching community, Philips electronics has started a revolution of a different kind!!

Ahh...relax folks...adjust your FOCUS...it's all 'little stuff' and easily handled in a peaceful and logical way. Duhhh..."think" ... the reason we get a level of education is: "To learn to THINK in a rational and logical manner!" We love the Capitalistic System, and it WORKS "if" we keep our focus. As a former Broadcaster I can tell ya: "Complain to the SPONSORS...not to Philips Inc., or the Networks, or the local Outlets, or the Producers or Program Directors!" These are, in the final analysis, "Sales Oriented". Sales and Marketing help provide the Bottom-Line for any corporation...."an honest level of profits for the stockholders who invest in the Broadcast Industry." Hey...in a Capitalistic System that's a fair goal. Let Philips get their patents and freeze you to their commercial-content. All YOU have to do is COMPLAIN to the SPONSOR'S Top Executives and tell 'em you are no longer buying their product as long as they appear to be unable to compete fairly as they have always done in the past!" Done! Trust me.....IT DOES WORK and is effective. Cute stuff I read here on "Gasoline Prices." No need to rant and rave...the Petroleum journals cut to the Bottom-Line: "We will continue to raise the prices on the basis of what-the-traffic-will-bare!" Relax...be focused, peaceful, logical, and rational and "think". Just set a March-Day...put 1-Million free-peaceful-citizens on the streets; and you'll see your gas prices soon come down without a lot of politico-promises. Philips Folks: spend a fortune on your technology to lock-in the masses....the 'focus' is really on the MONTHLY CHARGES you'll sell us later NOT to lock-us-in! Tah tah troopers...DON'T BUY THE PRODUCTS and CONTACT THE SPONSORS ! row1

For the record, I will never buy any piece of A/V equipment that forces me to watch commercials. Period.

Good luck boycotting Phillips since almost anything related to CDs and DVDs pays royalties to Phillips in one way or another.

It's a long way from patent application to retail sales. Having said that, I find it very interesting that the same people who fought to kill the "commercial skip" function in DVR/PVR technology now want to introduce technology that won't let you change channels during a commercial. Whether this is the root function, or whether the root function is to allow commercial suppression during a movie, the same issue will render this technology moot. Advertisers will kill it. It may be end being a 1st ammendment case or an unfair restraint of trade case. But at the end, any technology which prevents an advertiser from being viewed will not survive. Commercial suppression will unfairly "injure" an advertiser's right to participate in the marketplace. Locking a viewer into a channel's commercials will have the same effect to the advretisers not on that channel during that commercial break... They are going to eat each other up. This will be fun to watch.... As others have said, turning the TV off is an option. BTW, I am also very unhapopy that I pay over $100 a month for cable and have to watch stupid commercials on cable only channels... Ludicrous!!!

My family will boycot Phillips for sure! NO WAY will our rights in our home be violated with this garbage. We definately will fight back!

I just checked the US patents site and this is what that patent says: "Apparatus and method for preventing switching from a channel during an advertisement display" ummm....ooookkkk

THis Is So STUPID!!! It is Like forcing you to read the ads in the newspaper! I mean if we wanted to watch commercials we would ask for a commercial only TV channel, I mean come on were is our American right to Freedom?! joshuarowlan@yahoo.com Copyright 2006

I will not be purchasing anything that has a device like this in it. If other people refuse to buy into it also, there is no other choice but to stop supplying it.

This is another fine example of engineering living up to the motto, "If it can be done it should be done." which is just plain stupid. Like spending the money to research this technology. However, on the flip side if they can build something that can detect commercials and prevent you from skipping them (Basically what I feel is an inherent consumers right... if your ads annoy me I'll skip them, if they entertain me I won't.) then the same technology could be used to automatically skip them. DUH! Anyway I'm sure it's not been designed for broadcast systems since it seems that most networks have agreed to syncronize commercial breaks, or hasn't anyone noticed this? It's designed for TiVo boxes, DVDs, and yes probably VCRs. How would they get this into one of those? Put the technology into the video/tuner card. You could easily do this since most video streams are cached for processing in some way by comparing the signal with the commands if a "secret ad id" is 'on' and disable stream change commands. Not rocket science. You can turn the flag on when the signal is cut briefly, or takes a quick drop, for 15 seconds after the cut and up it to 30 seconds if the drop is followed by a sudden change in video or audio gain. To further aid this process it would be a snap to add a brief 'tag' to the start of all commercial content via a microsecond video spectrum sweep you couldn't see it but your tuner could detect it easily.

Commercial Lockdown Causes Problems In our last issue, I mentioned the new Philips chip that will...

OK, so now I have to pay someone to turn off a feature that I didn't want in the first place... ? Right... Watch how quick I run to the store to buy that...

First they insult our intelligence with drivel and erectile dysfunction ads. Then they increase the volume by 20 decibels to 'get' your attention. Now we can't change the channel? What is next? The inability to lower the volume? Unable to turn off the set during a commercial? What crap is this? PBS here I come!

How the hell would you change the channel? Turn TV, On a Channel with a commercial Have to wait five minutes Now you can change the channel You have just missed 5 minutes of the game (Or worse you turn it to the wrong channel and have to wait 5 more minutes to change the channel. Now you have missed 10 minutes. What type of Nazi mentallity is ths? There are no ads within books, how come??? THere should be less ads and more content worth watching.

How the hell would you change the channel? Turn TV, On a Channel with a commercial Have to wait five minutes Now you can change the channel You have just missed 5 minutes of the game (Or worse you turn it to the wrong channel and have to wait 5 more minutes to change the channel. Now you have missed 10 minutes. What type of Nazi mentallity is ths? There are no ads within books, how come??? THere should be less ads and more content worth watching.

How the hell would you change the channel? Turn TV, On a Channel with a commercial Have to wait five minutes Now you can change the channel You have just missed 5 minutes of the game (Or worse you turn it to the wrong channel and have to wait 5 more minutes to change the channel. Now you have missed 10 minutes. What type of Nazi mentallity is ths? There are no ads within books, how come??? THere should be less ads and more content worth watching.

It is interesting that on the one hand the television industry promotes the use of the V-Chip to keep you and you children from viewing material that you find objective. However more and more commercials are falling into that very category. With this feature you will not have the option to switch the channel when you see a commercial has objectional content.

I download the programs I want to watch. I get to watch entire seasons in a few weeks, no commercials, on my own schedule. Until they develop an unhackable proprietary connection between the provider and the TV itself, people will always be able to record video. They will always be able to edit out the commercials. They will always be able to post the recording to the internet annonymously. This capability only gets easier as time passes. Disabling channel surfing would force the last of the ludites onto the web, increasing the seeds for the torrents, making downloading even easier. I honest to god hope that they get the entire cable industry to disable channel surfing because that will be the death nell for the broadcast industry and an internet model will arise to take its place.

Can I patent a chip that will prevent you from turning off the TV when an ad is on?

It sounds one step closer to the telescreens in George Orwell's "1984". Can't turn it off and it tells you what to do.

Who needs TV anyway? You can get news without the bias easier elsewhere. Entertainment? You can get that, too. Is TV good for anything? Not even baby sitting with all the crap they call socially acceptable. I have slashed my TV viewing to almost zero...but, they probably already know that and don't care. If they adopt this dumb "technology" who will pay the broadcasters to disable it? Nobody, that's who. Another nail in their own coffins by the TV folks, that's what this is!

What about commercials that has adult products (beer etc.) or content (Paris Hilton's commercial) that a parent may feel is inappropriate for their children? Will we not be able to change the channel to protect our children? Wrong, wrong, wrong!

The Outer Limits "1984" "A Clockwork Orange" hmmm. The idea that a company needs more control of our home electronic devices is disturbing. But besides that idea that the sponsers would not let it happen at their consumer's request, the laywers won't let it happen. For years the industry has been defending itself againt charges that violent programs create violent actions. Their answer has always been that we are free to change the channel. Seems that defense would be out the window with this chip, then come the lawsuits... "But your Honor, the commercial made me do it! I had no choice!"

It's just a patent. Get over it. Companies patent stuff all the time that they never intend to use or that has no practical application. I know of cases where the patent has EXPIRED before the company ever got around to producing the technology in question (17 years, at the time).

I say boycott Phillips now just for thinking this up! That will send a powerful message to any other company attempting to control our personal freedoms.

I think is going to be bad for them because if they receive a negative answer from us (the customers) they got to stop that production, they must pay attention, if they not, we won't pay for that! as simple as that and we will buy another brand.

Hi. My name is Winston, and I'm tired of the viewscreen in my wall chattering constantly day in and day out without letting me change the channel. I just wish I had some alternative viewpoint, because all this Eurasia/Eastasia war business is just getting on my nerves. I only hope the thought-police don't see this post, as they may do a memory-wipe and I'll have to un-think all my previous comments...oh dear, isn't this 1984?

I may be able to tolerate clicking a button to disable the chip, but paying money so I may be able to skip commercials, I will not only turn it off, I will disconnect cable or any other broadcasting service altogether. Messing with people's time is one thing, messing with people's money, its unforgivable. For those who accuses the editor of fake information, read fine print of the patent and not the lawyer and marketing version.

I think Phillips missed a biggie - the MUTE button. Whenever commercials come on in our house there is a flurry of activity while everyone grabs for the remote to hit the mute button. I think they should add blocking the mute function to the patent. Then you will see people storming their offices and factories with less than kind intent!

I think this is the worst idea Phillips ever came up with. To sum it all up in one statement: that is just plain old NUTS!!!!!!!!!!

Lets stop buying Phillips now. I am buying two TV's this week. You can bet they will not be Phillips.

So we understand that advertising pays for content. That's the current business model. Now with DRM, content providers are now able to control the Digital Rights - they have them, and unless purchased, viewers have none. Problem is, users decide the successful business models. The current one is changing - people are skipping the commercials. As usual, business turns to technology (and legislation to keep counter-tech from succeeding) to protect outdated business models. If any company tries this scheme, then the content better be worth the insult (which it is) to the viewer. If not, someone else with similar content will come and eat their lunch.

I contend Philips is misrepresenting their patent application. Andre Manning, Director of Corporate Communication for Philips Electronics North America, asserts in his release of April 25, 2006 that their engineers have designed an approach "that enables watching a television movie without advertising". This was included in the discussion of the article by Brian C. at Tuesday, April 25, 2006 5:54 PM. But when reading the actual wording of the patent application (http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PG01&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=%2220060070095%22.PGNR.&OS=DN/20060070095&RS=DN/20060070095) a quite different intent comes through. The abstract in their formal patent application to the United States Patent Office declares "An apparatus (270) and method is disclosed for preventing a viewer from switching from a channel when an advertisement is being displayed on the channel. The apparatus (270) and method comprises an advertisement controller (270) in a video playback device (150) that (1) prevents a viewer of a direct (non-recorded) broadcast from switching channels when an advertisement is displayed, and (2) prevents a viewer of a recorded program from fast forwarding the recorded program in order to skip past advertisements that were recorded with the program."

In the 60's I lived for a while in Rio de Janiero. The TV ads were all in a bunch lasting about 15 minutes between shows. Each ad played a number of times in that 15 minutes. Then the show would proceed and be commercial free until the end when another barrage came. I loved it..you could get a sandwich, use the bathroom, or do many other things and still get back in time to watch a few ads before the show. The ads wre creative and often funny so you really didn't want to miss them. When was the last time YOU sang along to an ad?

Absent a convincing showing that this story is abjectly false, I will never buy another Phillips branded product again (and I actually own some Phillips equipment already, and would until now have recommended them to others...) until it assigns or exclusively licenses the patent to an entity that agrees: (1) to enforce the patent, by litigation if necessary, against anyone attempting to implement its technology for the purpose of forced commercial watching, and (2) never to license or sublicense the patent to anyone for any use allowing forced commercial watching. If anyone from the office of the general counsel at Phillips is reading this, and you want to talk about setting this up to mitigate the brewing storm, drop me a line...

Today they are doing something similar. On my DVD, I can not skip thru some of the advertising or the FBI warnings. I as a user should have a right to do anything I want with a DVD I bought and a DVD player I own. We should sue them for making defective products.

This idea can't be patented, because it is a well documented and existing idea, that shows up in George Orwells "1984" and Aldous Husley's "Brave New World". It has been in the common realm for more than twenty years. Not Original. Even Clockwork Orange provides a manifestation of this idea, by prying the eyes open to forc viewing.

This would be the best thing EVER for TV viewing. It means a signal will have to be present in the data stream to activate this "feature" whenever a commercial came on. Give ME that signal. PLEASE!. I'll build a mute box so fast my soldering iron won't even know what hit it. I HATE those ear-blasting intermissions so much I'm looking at building a DSP average-sound-level box now to cut'em off. With that signal, it's child's play.

When I learned the phsycology of advertising (aka brainwashing), I got rid of my TV, cancelled the cable subscription and picked up a DVD player and projector. If I want to watch a TV show, I'll wait until it comes out on DVD. I haven't watched a commercial in almost 4 years and damn it feels good. I'm totally immune to all the advertising crap that goes on. Just look at the cable & sat. providers today. They're conteplating a-la carte programming to keep people like me handing over the cash! If I'm going to pay for media content, I sure as hell ain't going to watch a f****** commercial.

I've already given up most TV precisely because commercials have become TOO intrusive, what little I watch (usually sports) is typically captured on TIVO, and I usually skip past the commercials. If this technology can also be used to PREVENT you from skipping past the commercials, then it's likely that I will turn to DVDs exclusively. And when they start inserting commercials into DVDs (only a matter of time), then my computer and the internet will capture my free time.

I find it interesting that posts talk about the "Rights of an American" & yet have been conditioned to accept so much crap as "Normal". It is so common for USA produced programs to take 22 mins of content & spin it into a 1 hr program. Listen out for "Coming up after the break... " then have 3 mins of ad + station promo then "Just before the break we saw " This is a total waste of your time, yet many will justify it. Then in 3 hs the channel will show a repeat of the program again. This kills me that so much of America just accepts this. We all squeal now, but wait a few year, when the stations target the viewer & show different adds to different viewers & It will be interesting to see how many of us keep watching like the dopes we are. ;-)

Hmmmmmmmmm? So it seems with all of this responces the subjects are already jones'n out. TV? Adiction? Amazes me that we, humans, even made it this far without the hypnosis of TV sets to give true meaning to life. I listen to people that seem to find the created reality of TV the truest adventure life has to offer. Turn the damn things off!! Get out of your cubes!! Create a REAL LIFE of your own!! Who knows? You just might enjoy it.

This is a red herring folks, this company is not so stupid to think they could possible get away with a stunt like this. Just think of all the channels out there, you can only watch one at a time, thus we are only watching a very small postion of the commercials aired. Boycot the companys all you want but done get sucked into this false hood.

Oh! My! With nothing but time on their hands. Next thing you know, Kohler will be figuring a way to charge me for using my own toilet!! I give thanks for those that stay on top of things and expose the "anything for a buck" syndromes.