Interesting People mailing list archives
IP: Where will it end : Sklyarov and AAP, etc.
From: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Sun, 05 Aug 2001 13:28:57 -0400
Date: Sun, 5 Aug 2001 13:07:38 -0400 To: farber () cis upenn edu From: Mikki Barry <ooblick () netpolicy com> Subject: Re: IP: Fwd: Sklyarov and AAP, etc. Lauren's mention of the restrictions regarding fair use rights to record digital content are right on the mark. I recently began investigating how I could record digital (or for that matter analog) content directly from satellite transmissions, or even from my own antenna. The equipment to do this USED to be available in the US, but apparently pressure brought by the MPAA and others resulted in its being pulled from the market. Panasonic made a high definition decoder that connected via firewire to a D-VHC VCR. This setup would allow for recording in HD (or analog) from your home antenna. In combination with a now also discontinued Dish Network receiver, recording of satellite signals was possible. Dish was pressured to encode the output of their HD receiver in order to make this practice difficult if not impossible. The combination of the DMCA, the negation of our fair use rights to make non commercial archival copies, and the stomping of our first amendment rights to even SPEAK about how to circumvent the artificial barriers for fair use purposes, is a serious threat to much of what we currently take for granted. Tivos and Ultimate TV boxes let you record digitally, but notice there's no firewire output available any longer. They're wonderful machines, but when you get to the end of your 30 or 60 hours, you have to start deleting content or hack the machine to add more space. Why, when it would be so simple to allow you to digitally archive your favorite programs not available on DVD to digital VHS or miniDV or even DVD-R (which of course, you can't encrypt the way the "big boys" do unless you buy an expensive "authoring" unit). Where will this stop? I used to laugh about something that we were told by an attorney for MPAA at a CPSR forum. He said to the group that UDRPs and the "anti cybersquatting consumer protection act" against domain names were only the beginning. He said that they would not stop until they could control Internet content as well. I'm not laughing anymore.
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- IP: Where will it end : Sklyarov and AAP, etc. David Farber (Aug 05)