[opendtv] TiVo's Plans Lead to Fight On Copyrights

TiVo's Plans Lead to Fight On Copyrights
Technology Would Allow Transfer of Programs

By Jonathan Krim
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, July 22, 2004; Page E01

Hollywood studios and the National Football League are seeking to 
block the maker of the popular TiVo television recorder from 
expanding its service so that users could watch copies of shows and 
movies on devices outside their homes.

In filings with the Federal Communications Commission, the 
organizations say the new technology could compromise the copyrights 
of shows that broadcasters send over the airwaves in digital form, 
which offers much higher sound and video quality than what viewers 
typically get today.

The organizations fear that computer enthusiasts would capture those 
programs and begin trading them online in the same way that millions 
of music files are shared daily, which record companies have said has 
cut into their profit. TiVo Inc. insists its system will not allow 
such mass Internet distribution.

The battle is one of several being waged in federal agencies and on 
Capitol Hill this summer, as content companies such as the movie and 
music companies seek to keep control of copyrighted works that 
increasingly can be digitally stored, copied, manipulated and 
distributed by users. In turn, several public advocacy groups and 
technology companies warn that the content companies are trying to 
revoke long-standing consumer rights to "fair use" of artistic works.

...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A4042-2004Jul21
 
 
 
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