FCC's Chief Calls TiVo 'God's Machine'

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

------ Forwarded Message
From: "Robert J. Berger" <rberger () ibd com>

FCC's Chief Calls TiVo 'God's Machine'

By Jim Krane
AP Technology Writer
Saturday, January 11, 2003; 2:02 AM
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41345-2003Jan11.html

LAS VEGAS ­­ The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is a new
convert ­ to the personal digital video recorder.

"My favorite product that I got for Christmas is TiVo," FCC chairman Michael
Powell said during a question and answer session at the International
Consumer Electronics Show. "TiVo is God's machine."

If Powell's enthusiasm for digital recordings of TV broadcasts is reflected
in FCC rulings, the entertainment industry could have a tough time pushing
its agenda in Washington. It wants restrictions on making and sharing the
recordings.

Powell said he plans to use TiVo to record shows to play on other TV sets in
his home, and suggested he might share recordings with his sister if she
misses a show.

Powell made the statements during a brief exchange with Gary Shapiro, who
heads the Consumer Electronics Association, a lobbying group opposed to
government-imposed restrictions on TiVo-like digital recording technology.

Shapiro was clearly delighted, calling Powell's statement "good news" and
suggesting to Powell that his regulatory authority might allow him to rule
in favor of sharing recorded TV broadcasts.

"That's up to you, actually," Shapiro said. "We're glad. We hope some of
your colleagues in Congress buy a TiVo as well."

Many in Hollywood have railed against the machines, saying they could cut
into TV advertising revenues. TiVo can remove commercials before viewing.

The entertainment industry has proposed "broadcast flag" technology that
could thwart or limit copying or distribution of pirated broadcasts over the
Internet. Many in the industry fear the broadcasts could be sold online.

Powell said the FCC was examining the broadcast flag issue to determine
whether the agency has a regulatory role. He suggested Congress might
"assign us a role so we have clear jurisdiction and resources to do it."

A TiVo competitor, SONICblue, has been sued by motion picture studios and
television networks over a ReplayTV device that enables users to share
digitally recorded shows over the Internet with a limited group of fellow
ReplayTV owners.

Powell said he understood the need to balance the interests of consumers
with those of Hollywood and broadcasters.

One upcoming TV series plans to fight commercial skipping technology by
blending advertising into its programming, offering a seamless hour of
entertainment mixed with salesmanship.

The series will air for six weeks on the WB network. The show, with the
working title, "Live from Tomorrow," will be produced by Michael Davies,
best-known for ABC's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire," according to a story
Friday in The New York Times.


-- 
Robert J. Berger - Internet Bandwidth Development, LLC.
In Tokyo as Glocom visiting research fellow through April 2003
Cell: +81 80-3121-6128 Work: +81 3-5411-6613 http://www.glocom.ac.jp
eFax: +1-408-490-2868 rberger () ibd com http://www.ibd.com



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