[opendtv] Pay Cablers Fear DVD Burn / HBO, Showtime Seek Limits on DigitalCopying, but Starz! Has Different View
- From: Monty Solomon <monty@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 1 Jun 2004 08:58:41 -0400
Pay Cablers Fear DVD Burn
HBO, Showtime Seek Limits on Digital Copying, but Starz! Has Different View
By John Motavalli
An attempt by the cable, pay TV, consumer electronics and movie
industries to reach a plug-and-play agreement with the Federal
Communications Commission on consumer recording of rapidly growing
on-demand programming is in tatters.
A major split has developed that pits unlikely allies-the two largest
pay TV services, HBO and Showtime-against the No. 3 pay TV operator,
Starz! Encore, most cable operators and the consumer electronics
industry.
The term plug-and-play de-scribes the FCC's goal of allowing
consumers to plug their cables directly into their digital TV sets
without using a cable set-top box. To receive two-way services such
as video-on-demand, pay-per-view or interactive program guides,
consumers would still need a box, however, and that's where the
trouble begins. In a statement last year, the FCC said it "encouraged
the cable and consumer electronics industries to consult with
interested parties and affected industries as the two-way
negotiations progress."
While home recording of a program one time for personal use has been
legal since the 1980s, the issue has moved to the forefront again
because in the digital age it is possible to make perfect copies
every time. Now the emerging use of video-on-demand organizes content
in a way that makes it even easier to access and in turn, record and
copy.
Existing rules allow a copy to be made once off pay TV. If the FCC
does not make a new ruling, that applies to on-demand as well. While
the FCC has left it to the industry to sort it out, absent an FCC
ruling, the industry will not sort it out, insiders say; the consumer
electronics manufacturers will not be forced to make equipment with
the encoding mechanisms. Therefore the status quo will stand, with
consumers being able to record on demand.
Cable companies are already rolling out new set-top boxes that make
it possible to record off pay TV or VOD with a digital video recorder
or a VCR. The next generation of boxes is expected to also include
the option to add a DVD burner, which would make permanent, perfect
copies.
http://www.tvweek.com/topstorys/053104pay.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways:
- Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at
FreeLists.org
- By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word
unsubscribe in the subject line.
Other related posts:
- » [opendtv] Pay Cablers Fear DVD Burn / HBO, Showtime Seek Limits on DigitalCopying, but Starz! Has Different View
