Raph's Girl
04-05-2005, 06:46 PM
Got this in my e-mail from somebody I know in the video recording industry....Apperantly Hollywood is now after people who record movies and tv shows on their VCR's....oh heavens....will it never end?! :o
Issues & Agendas:
Whaddayamean I Can't Tape That HD Show?
Could you be dragged away in chains by the feds for taping a high-definition television show at home? Perhaps, especially if the hardliners at Hollywood's motion picture studios get their way.
The controversy over how consumers may use digital content is now before the U.S. Supreme Court. A key issue centers on the 30-year-old "Betamax Doctrine," the legal foundation that allows home viewers to freely record
and watch legitimately acquired entertainment programming.
Now, just in time for the HDTV era, the studios*who detest the Betamax Doctrine--are again trying to limit the rights of home recordists, claiming
it's too easy for high-value programs to be pirated and traded over the Internet. More severe restrictions on digital rights could have
far-reaching implications for producers. Imagine your future HD production tied up hopelessly in red tape because you need to secure new clearances on all the content now commonly used as "B-roll" program elements.
The case (MGM Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd) targets the legality of peer-to-peer (P2P) Internet sites, where content is often traded. The
justices are expected to decide whether such sites are illegal or simply a modern version of the VCR.
Beyond the studios and major content owners, there is little support for reversing the Betamax Doctrine. The Consumer Electronics Association, the backer of the huge annual CES electronics show, calls the doctrine "the foundation of this nation's explosive technological growth over the last 20 years." It is mounting a major fight to keep the doctrine.
Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association, called it "the most important case before the Supreme Court this year. Betamax is the Magna Carta for everyone who enjoys their iPods, TiVos, personal computers, and most of the products you see at CES."
Many observers see the case as a battle over the future of entertainment content distribution. At stake is the current closed distribution monopoly
held by the movie studios and music companies. New technologies, represented by peer to peer file sharing, threaten those monopolies.
The Supreme Court heard arguments in MGM v. Grokster last Tuesday, March 29. A decision is expected by summer.
Issues & Agendas:
Whaddayamean I Can't Tape That HD Show?
Could you be dragged away in chains by the feds for taping a high-definition television show at home? Perhaps, especially if the hardliners at Hollywood's motion picture studios get their way.
The controversy over how consumers may use digital content is now before the U.S. Supreme Court. A key issue centers on the 30-year-old "Betamax Doctrine," the legal foundation that allows home viewers to freely record
and watch legitimately acquired entertainment programming.
Now, just in time for the HDTV era, the studios*who detest the Betamax Doctrine--are again trying to limit the rights of home recordists, claiming
it's too easy for high-value programs to be pirated and traded over the Internet. More severe restrictions on digital rights could have
far-reaching implications for producers. Imagine your future HD production tied up hopelessly in red tape because you need to secure new clearances on all the content now commonly used as "B-roll" program elements.
The case (MGM Studios, Inc. v. Grokster, Ltd) targets the legality of peer-to-peer (P2P) Internet sites, where content is often traded. The
justices are expected to decide whether such sites are illegal or simply a modern version of the VCR.
Beyond the studios and major content owners, there is little support for reversing the Betamax Doctrine. The Consumer Electronics Association, the backer of the huge annual CES electronics show, calls the doctrine "the foundation of this nation's explosive technological growth over the last 20 years." It is mounting a major fight to keep the doctrine.
Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association, called it "the most important case before the Supreme Court this year. Betamax is the Magna Carta for everyone who enjoys their iPods, TiVos, personal computers, and most of the products you see at CES."
Many observers see the case as a battle over the future of entertainment content distribution. At stake is the current closed distribution monopoly
held by the movie studios and music companies. New technologies, represented by peer to peer file sharing, threaten those monopolies.
The Supreme Court heard arguments in MGM v. Grokster last Tuesday, March 29. A decision is expected by summer.