HBO Asking FCC To Stop DVR Recordings [Archive]

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Dave

02-10-06, 01:42 PM

It appears that there is a very important case coming before the FCC. HBO is petitioning to S T O P any and all DVR's from recording there shows or movies. It would appear they are going to try the, STOP VCR approach. If you recall the movie industry tried to stop the recording of VCR's when they came out. What they would have to do is put a codec in the content of all there shows and movies to do this. But what about the movies they show without the blocking codec attached? Will or can they and this attachment legally?

invaliduser88

02-10-06, 02:01 PM

Can you provide any links to stories concerning this?

olgeezer

02-10-06, 02:07 PM

Are you sure, that with the DRM agreement, that couldn't be done now with all non OTA programming?

juan ellitinez

02-10-06, 02:08 PM

not eactly toattlay accurate http://techdirt.com/articles/20051006/1654255_F.shtml

juan ellitinez

02-10-06, 02:10 PM

here's another http://radar.oreilly.com/archives/2005/10/hbo_attacking_bittorrent.html

Dave

02-10-06, 02:18 PM

Actually what they are trying to stop right now is the recording of the VOD's , Video On Demand and Pay Per View programs at the present time.

Geronimo

02-10-06, 02:19 PM

not eactly toattlay accurate http://techdirt.com/articles/20051006/1654255_F.shtml

Thanks Juan. taht amkes more sense.

olgeezer

02-10-06, 02:23 PM

From Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_rights_management#Digital_Millennium_Copyr ight_Act

Dave

02-10-06, 02:37 PM

Seen it at,
www.zatznotfunny.com

If they want to stop recording VOD, and pay per views, what will they want next. If you want to record the show to watch later because its a good show you really want to see and can't, why would you want to even subscribe to there programing.

Stewart Vernon

02-10-06, 11:27 PM

DonLandis

02-11-06, 01:53 AM

Yeah... I think this is a case of if they win they would lose... because if they won the time-shifting ban by barring DVRs... they would render a whole bunch of folks unable to watch their programming because they aren't home at the right times... and those folks would stop paying for the programming they couldn't record or watch. I know I would!

Not at all. When I first heard the story break earlier Friday, the source did say that HBO wanted to stop all DVR useage on any of its programming. But further checking into the actual wording of the Petition shows that it is to petition the FCC to use the Broadcast Flag for their SVOD service only that is supplied to cable. Since the Broadcast Flag was originally designed with copy none as a way to protect content providers from having their PPV programming stored on playback devices such as the DVR, it in effect defeats the purpose of PPV and Vodeo on demand business model. If you think about it, Video on demand is that anyway. It is a video that you decide to play on demand. The ONLY drawback to their request for DVR's is the idea that this broadcast flag of copy none would prevent slomo and instant replay for the VOD viewer. I'm not so sure this is true either because as I understand, copy none does permit a temporary storage of the program for that purpose. eg. in the HD Tivo you have the prior half hour as a dynamic buffer to review live recordings. Isn't the 921 2 hours?

The main issue I see is why would they bother? Seems to me their petition will just alienate many subscribers who have invested in a DVR. But worse, I feel it is a step in the wrong direction. There is just too little to gain with this sort of request.

FYI currently HBO and others have opted for the DRM flags on all their content that is supposed to prevent you from making a copy of a copy. Not an analog copy but a digital to digital copy as in copy once. Since I have no way to make a digital copy of my DVR content I don't know if this claim is true or not.