FCC to take on TV Piracy
 

http://money.cnn.com/2003/10/21/tech...v_piracy.reut/

FCC to foil program piracy

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Regulators in coming weeks will adopt strict limits on sending digital television programs over the Internet to avoid the problems now plaguing the music industry, officials said Tuesday.


The Federal Communications Commission will likely adopt rules that will allow programmers to attach a code to digital broadcasts that will in most cases bar consumers from sending copies of popular shows around the world, said the officials, who declined further identification.

The approval, expected as early as next week, would be another step along the long road to the higher-quality, crisper digital signals, which have been slowed because of worries about piracy, high-priced equipment and limited available programming.

An agency spokeswoman declined to comment on when the five commissioners would vote on the issue.

Consumer advocates have warned that consumers will have to buy new DVD players if they want to play programs that have been recorded on machines that recognize the digital flag. But agency officials stressed that always happens when new technology hits the market.

"It will simply prevent consumers from illegal piracy, from mass distribution over the Internet, which is the problem with the music file-sharing," Kenneth Ferree, head of the FCC's media bureau, said in a telephone interview.









Anyoen know anything else about this? Any details? I'm not sure what they are saying. I guess this will only apply to new recording devices like newer Tivos etc.

Kind of strange...they let you watch the show for free, but if you miss the broadcast you're screwed? The internet is a great way to pick up episodes you've missed of your favorite shows, and I'm sure it's brought them viewers that they might not have gotten otherwise.

:up: to finally getting the above in gear.

:down: to another Big Brother issue.

we have hudreds of cable channels. all shows should be reran on their like some (like 24) are now.

Stupid move; do NOT follow the RIAA; it's just going to bring you down.

I thought they were combating pirating by splashing HUGE POP UPS under the show after commercial breaks. That would get people to buy the DVDs just to get rid of that.

In their minds, you aren't watching the show "for free." You are seeing the advertisements.

To watch the show on your computer, usually with no commercials, defeats the purpose.

In reality, does it really matter if you see the commercials or not? No, I don't really think it does. But their business model depends on viewers seeing advertisements. It's a business, nothing more.

I understand their thinking on this, but really who watches commercials anymore? I know I don't. This why they have all the banners and pop-ups and such...all of which are intact in the Internet version.

I agree, I don't think the ads work any longer.

Television advertising is probably going to change, and soon. Either through more intrusive pop-ups, a return to "show sponsoring" or charging for basic television.

Why doesn't the FCC allow broadcasters to show the program on the internet with full commercials in high quality? That would atleast solve the problem of piracy because then we wouldn't have to go hunting for the latest episode when we can just go to the show's website.

Because that Idea actually makes some sense. They could repackage it with a whole different set of commercials and make more money.

i dont think thats even FCC jurisdicition. the networks should be free to do it themselves.

If trading of shows online is going to be further restricted I think networks should make past shows more readily available. I think there would be a huge market in a pay-per-view type setting for shows that have already been broadcast. I know that just sounds like an idea for networks to get more money, but with ads becoming less lucrative they will need an income alternative. The pay-per-view could possibly limit the trading of shows online, if the price and terms of use are fair.

Yeah, and they probably could, but they won't. I think the problem is that station affiliates get to select some local commercials to run. By allowing you to see the shows on the Internet, they're essentially creating a competition with the local affiliate, and the affiliate gets angry -- if you're not watching the affiliate station, you won't see their commercials, and therefore they lose money.

Which also seems to be a big reason local affiliates won't sign-off on waivers in order for someone to get national feeds on Dish or DirecTV.

That's ridiculous. If you release it to DVD, someone's going to rip that and put it online anyway.

Waste of time and money.

So everytime the pirates crack the protection they're going to make us buy new hardware?

Waste of time and money indeed. I know I will still download my favorite shows. Why? well if I can watch them on air, that's great, but I want to see some shows over and over again and I use it that way instead of wasting a VHS tape. I've got Survivor on a digital source. Does it mean it's going to bring down the ratings?

Does anyone know what is the legallity of taping shows on VHS?

It's legal. You just can't distribute it (within reason) or charge people to watch it.

Yup. under Timeshifting laws when the networks tried to sue sony for unleashing the monster that would destroy the industry called VCR... -rolleyes-

Pretty much all you are doing is shifting the time in which you see the show. You can record it and laws about warehousing it (taping a series and keeping in on your shelf) were very grey. So unless you are making some cash on it, you can keep it for your own.

Couple of related articles

http://talkshows.about.com/library/weekly/aa011603a.htm


http://www.time.com/time/business/ar...203498,00.html