Broadcast Flag

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MPAA won't get Broadcast Flag in digital TV bill!

Cory Doctorow: It looks like the MPAA is giving up on getting a Broadcast Flag clause inserted into an upcoming digital TV bill! w00t! In your face! The Motion Picture Association of America is unlikely to push for a broadcast flag component in DTV legislation establishing a 2008 hard date because the bill's main author, House Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-TX), is against the provision. Meanwhile, the MPAA will keep briefing House and Senate members on a broadcast flag bill's importance and seek other ways to get the content protections it wants. Link


MPAA Giving Up on Broadcast Flag... For Now?

MPAA Giving Up on Broadcast Flag... For Now?. YetAnotherName writes "The MPAA, which has worked hard to get a broadcast flag into US digital television, is unlikely to push for it, according to the EFF. Previously, the US Court of Appeals ruled that the FCC didn't have the authority to mandate the flag, and the MPAA began to strike back. Naturally, the fight isn't over yet." [Slashdot]


MPAA May Not Seek Broadcast Flag in DTV Bill

The Motion Picture Association of America is unlikely to push for a broadcast flag component in DTV legislation establishing a 2008 hard date because the bill's main author, House Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-TX), is against the provision. Read the full story hereOk, some of you know my thoughts about the MPAA, let's just say: Nah...Nah...Na Nah...Nah


TV execs don't care whether or not the Broadcast Flag makes watching TV more frustrating

TV execs are being boneheads, again. The Broadcast Flag is a bad idea. -- Related entries: HDTV, Home Entertainment It's no secret that the networks are hell-bent on pushing through the Broadcast Flag, which they think will help prevent piracy of digital TV shows, but you won't believe how a TV industry exec responded to Mike Godwin from Public Knowledge, one of the groups fighting the rule, during a talk he was giving about the rule. Godwin complained that one of the more...


'Broadcast Flag' stuck down!

It was a significant victory for libraries, consumer groups and civil liberties organizations. They had maintained that the regulation, known as the broadcast flag rule, would stifle innovation in technology and make it more difficult for consumers and users of...


Cory's Broadcast Flag talk as streaming video

Cory Doctorow: On Wednesday, I gave a talk at the London campus of Florida State University on the American Broadcast Flag and the coming European Broadcast Flag. A friend of Alfie's brought down a couple of camcorders and filmed the whole thing and now it's up as a pair of streaming Quicktimes. Part 1, Part 2 (Thanks, Alfie!) Update: MP3 torrent here


Glickman on the Broadcast Flag

CNET News is running an opinion article by MPAA head Dan Glickman about why he thinks the Broadcast Flag is the only to save quality television from extinction (he should maybe talk to Mark Pesce about that one). This propaganda piece would hardly deserve a mention if not for one quote that shows just how much the MPAA cares about us: The basic outline of the broadcast flag was approved in principle by a large and diverse group of consumer electronics, computer technology and video content


US court shuts down broadcast flag

A United States federal court has ruled against the FCC's strong recommendation that television manufacturers build a " broadcast flag " into the signal transmission and presentation devices of digital televisions. Proponents of the broadcast flag had argued that such a mandated technology would limit piracy of digital television programs. Opponents described the method as harming legitimate uses of digital content, while hurting American device manufacturers in a global market generally lacking broadcast flags.


Broadcast Flag Not Required

A U.S. appeals court on Friday struck down the FCC Broadcast Flag rule designed to limit people from sending copies of digital television programs over the Internet. The regulations, which the FCC created in November 2003, would have prohibited the manufacture of computer and video hardware that doesnt have copy protection . The earlier FCC ruling (pdf), requiring a broadcast flag, would have regulated what people do with TV shows after theyve received them. Todays decision ( pdf ) by the US Court of Appeals , is widely viewed as a victory for consumers. The American Library Association , Public ...


Broadcast Flag Struck Down By Appeals Court

Broadcast Flag Struck Down By Appeals Court On Friday the United States Court of Appeals ruled in favor of consumers in a hearing on Broadcast Flag. The Appeals Court ruled that the FCC does not have the authority to decide whether consumer electronics devices sold in the United States must ...


Broadcast Flag Sneak Not Attempted

Trizero writes "THOMAS, one of the best sources for Congressional action on the Internet has shown that no amendments occured to the CJS Appropriations Bill. Monday, Slashdot covered the EFF announcing a rumor that a senator was attempting to sneak an amendment to bring the Broadcast Flag into law. From THOMAS (scroll down to the bottom): "6/21/2005: Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies. Approved for full committee consideration without amendment favorably." Translation: No one attempted to sneak the Broadcast flag into law." Update: 06/22 18:55 GMT by J : The EFF's new Activism Coordinator, Danny O'Brien, sees this as a victory for swift citizen action. Impressive numbers. Nice work by EFF and Public Knowledge, and everyone who raised their voice.


They Never Give Up: MPAA Tries To Sneak Broadcast Flag Bill Into Law

After the U. S. Congress told the Motion Picture Association of America that they wouldn't roll over and legislate the broadcast flag after U. S. courts realized that the FCC had no authority to mandate it, the MPAA went to work on figuring out a sneaky way to get the bill approved. [Techdirt] • Unlimited [...]


Streaming video of Broadcast Flag talk

Cory Doctorow: Last night, I gave a talk on the American Broadcast Flag and the coming European Broadcast Flag at Londons eCademy meeting. Its online now as a streaming (ugh) Windows Media (ugh ugh) filefast work! well worth a watch, except maybe for people who follow Doctorows talks already for a while plenty of new stuff. ;)


MPAA won't push for Broadcast Flag provision in DTV bill

In more broadcast flag news, this just in: According to EFF, the MPAA is unlikely to push to have Broadcast Flag legislation included in an upcoming digital TV bill, thanks to the House Commerce Committe Chairman Joe Barton, who thinks it's a bad idea. The MPAA will instead try to find other ways to weasel their fair use-limiting rules into American law. Via Boing Boing.


CDT Offers Recommendations on Broadcast Flag Legislation.

CDT Offers Recommendations on Broadcast Flag Legislation. As Congress considers mandating a Broadcast Flag regime to protect digital television signals from piracy, CDT is urging lawmakers to ensure that such a law does not interfere with the rights of individuals to use digital content, or of inventors to develop new technologies. To that end, CDT has drafted a report outlining key considerations for Congress as it ponders broadcast flag legislation. Though it is unclear whether Congress will move on legislation this year, pressure to enact a law has increased since a federal court struck down broadcast flag rules written by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). [Center for Democracy and Technology]


Court Strikes Down FCC's "Broadcast Flag" Rules.

Court Strikes Down FCC's "Broadcast Flag" Rules. A Federal court ruled today that the FCC did not have the authority to mandate "broadcast flag" regulations designed to deter widespread copying of digital TV broadcasts. The rules would have required that televisions, computers, and all other devices handling broadcast digital programs obey certain content protection standards starting in July 2005. The debate over the flag scheme is now likely to move to Congress, whose authorization would be needed to revive the rules. [Center for Democracy and Technology]


CDT Broadcast Flag Recommendations

CDT's posting of their broadcast flag recommendations has gotten under Declan McCullagh's skin. Reading the recommendations, the CDT is clearly taking a lawyer's position on the flag, indicating that there are procedural instruments that should be made a part of whatever enabling legislation that may emerge from Congress to satisfy the ...


Broadcast Flag shot down!

Great news from the legal front: a court has ruled that the FCC overstepped its bounds in requiring all new HDTV hardware to have broadcast flag features after July 1, 2005 and promptly struck it down in a unanimous decision....


Broadcast Flag 2 - Electric Boogaloo

blamanj wrote to mention that, a week after we reported on the court rejection of the broadcast flag, the MPAA is working on new legislation to broaden the FCCs power. From the article: The draft bill says, simply, that the FCC will have authority to adopt regulations governing digital television apparatus necessary to control the indiscriminate redistribution of digital television broadcast content over digital networks. The DC Circuit nixed the flag on the grounds that the FCC didnt have the authority.


Broadcast Flag Lowered?

A U.S. appeals court on Friday struck down the FCC Broadcast Flag rule designed to limit people from sending copies of digital television programs over the Internet. The regulations, which the FCC created in November 2003, would have prohibited the manufacture of computer and video hardware that doesnt have copy protection . A broadcast flag is code that allows content owners to place limits on redistribution of digital content streams. The rule was to apply to devices manufactured on or after July 1, 2005. The ruling is a setback for the motion-picture industry , which pushed hard for the rules ...


A Broadcast Flag Update Sept. 26

The RIAA and MPAA have teamed up to demand that Congress get the FCC to create a super-duper broadcast flag for radio and TV. This means that they'll get a veto over pretty much anything that can play video or music -- from your iPod to your PC's tuner card. Story found on Boing Boing, but link goes to EFF story.


MPAA Giving Up on Broadcast Flag For Now?

The MPAA, which has worked hard to get a broadcast flag into US digital television, is unlikely to push for it, according to the EFF. Previously, the US Court of Appeals ruled that the FCC didnt have the authority to mandate the flag, and the MPAA began to strike back.


Help stop the Broadcast Flag

We lucked out when a federal appeals court struck down the lameness that is the Broadcast Flag earlier this month, but that sort of setback doesn't faze the alliance of broadcasters and movie studios which pushed the rule on the FCC in the first place. Remember that the court overturned the rule because the FCC had overstepped its authority, not because the Broadcast Flag was inherently unconstitutional, so now the industry has decided to stop messing around and are leaning on their pals in


Broadcast flag debate returns to Capitol Hill | News.blog | CNET News.com

now that is hard to imagine... what with ABC running the Dancing with the Stars program and a remake of Gilligan's Island. I can't imagine TV getting any less interesting... Link: Broadcast flag debate returns to Capitol Hill | News.blog...


Broadcast Flag 2 - Electric Boogaloo

blamanj wrote to mention that, a week after we reported on the court rejection of the broadcast flag, the MPAA is working on new legislation to broaden the FCC's power. From the article: "The draft bill says, simply, that the FCC will 'have authority to adopt regulations governing digital television apparatus necessary to control the indiscriminate redistribution of digital television broadcast content over digital networks.' The DC Circuit nixed the flag on the grounds that the FCC didn't have the authority. This language would clear that up." Update: 05/13 19:20 GMT by Z : Title amended with apologies to the Bugaloos.