This is pretty interesting. According to an article at TheState.com:

Time Warner Cable is testing a new service in South Carolina called StartOver that will let people restart movies or shows if they miss their beginnings.

The service would:

• Store recordings of selected programming on Time Warner Cable's corporate computers • Allow people with digital cable to use their TV remote controls to restart the programs during broadcasts.

The cool thing is that a DVR box isn't required. It's nice to think customers who don't want to invest in DVRs and other upgrades can still have more control over their TV viewing.

Read Service allows shows, movies to start over