HRRC Opposes RIAA Effort To Stifle Noncommercial Home Uses Of Digital Radio

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Rodolfo La Maestra <Rodolfo.LaMaestra () Verizon net>
Date: September 26, 2005 4:31:59 PM EDT
To: HDTV Magazine <hdtvmagazine_tips () ilovehdtv com>
Subject: FW: HRRC Opposes RIAA Effort To Stifle Noncommercial Home  
Uses Of Digital Radio
Reply-To: HDTV Magazine <hdtvmagazine_tips () ilovehdtv com>
Reply-To: Rodolfo.LaMaestra () Verizon net


----- HDTV Magazine Tips List -----

This came in this morning.

Remember when I said the MPAA is coming back stronger than just the  
broadcast flag plan?  The
proposal below is from the RIAA, MPAA's audio sister, and is just a  
hint of what the MPAA would do
with HD video content if the RIAA gets away with this proposal.

Dale, the MPAA you invited would be certainly welcome to tell their  
story on this mag, but if they
are planning similar proposals you would certainly want me to be as  
far as Mars at that moment.

Over a year ago I wrote an entire article about similar issues with  
HD content and networking, I
anticipated that this will come soon and I wished I was wrong, and  
this is just the beginning.
Hopefully that article would be cleared to been able to be released  
for this Mag soon, it would be
ideal that the people of this mag would read it before the MPAA is  
invited.

Best Regards,

Rodolfo La Maestra



-----Original Message-----
From: Erica Corley [mailto:PR.233.999518 () prnews2 com]
Sent: Monday, September 26, 2005 10:02 AM
To: rodolfo.lamaestra () verizon net
Subject: HRRC Opposes RIAA Effort To Stifle Noncommercial Home Uses Of
Digital Radio


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:     Jeff Joseph                      or                 
Robert Schwartz
             tel: (703) 907-7664                                tel:  
(202) 756-8081
             e-mail: info () hrrc org                              e- 
mail: rschwartz () mwe com
             http://www.HRRC.org

HRRC Opposes RIAA Effort To Stifle Noncommercial Home Uses Of Digital  
Radio

RIAA Proposal Would Limit Consumers' Rights to
Copying Inside Home
Proposal Could Disable Consumer Devices

      Washington, D.C., September 26, 2005 - The Home Recording  
Rights Coalition (HRRC) today
expressed its opposition to an effort by the recording industry to  
revive a vague and ill-considered
proposal that would hobble new digital radios with anti-recording and  
"place-shifting" provisions
aimed at private, noncommercial home use.  The Recording Industry  
Association of America's (RIAA)
proposal would constrain reasonable and customary consumer home  
practices, and could simply make it
impossible for new radio receivers to function in existing home  
networks.

       Last year, the recording industry asked the Federal  
Communications Commission (FCC) to add
in-home copying restrictions to the new Digital Audio Broadcasting  
(or "high-definition radio")
service that broadcasters are now launching.  The FCC issued a Notice  
of Inquiry but thereafter took
no action and is not expected to, especially after the U.S. Court of  
Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
ruled that the FCC lacks jurisdiction to impose a "broadcast flag"  
obligation on television
receivers.  Now, the RIAA is asking the Congress to grant special  
jurisdiction to the FCC to issue
regulations based on the ill-formed and ill-advised RIAA proposals.

       Today, HRRC Chairman Gary Shapiro said:

"The most startling aspect of the RIAA's proposal is that it is not  
aimed at 'Internet pirates', but
at noncommercial practices that millions of Americans engage in  
within their homes.  This is very
different from the TV 'Broadcast Flag,' which itself has been highly  
controversial.  Unlike the TV
flag, the RIAA proposal is specifically aimed at limiting home  
recording.  While the TV flag focuses
on mass, indiscriminate public redistribution over the Internet, the  
RIAA scheme is focused on
noncommercial behavior in private homes.  Indeed, the RIAA seems to  
contemplate some encryption
scheme which would make it impossible to hook up receivers to  
existing home music systems.  If this
were to go forward, consumers would rightfully rebel at this  
unprecedented government intrusion into
their private, noncommercial home use practices."
      In FCC filings, HRRC and others have pointed out that free  
terrestrial broadcasts have never
been subject to prior approval from the record industry.  They noted  
that RIAA's proposal sets terms
and conditions under which home recordings can occur, and that the  
implementation of this proposal
via use of encryption technologies would disable listening over  
existing devices - whether or not
the listener intended to record any content.

      Shapiro stated:

"The concerns over RIAA's proposals have never been addressed.  At a  
minimum, the Congress should
consider them in a public hearing before writing a blank check to the  
FCC and the RIAA."

    For updates on copy protection issues, and related Congressional  
and FCC proceedings, please visit
www.HRRC.org.

About HRRC:
The Home Recording Rights Coalition, founded in 1981, is a leading  
advocacy group for consumers'
rights to use home electronics products for private, non-commercial  
purposes. The members of HRRC
include consumers, retailers, manufacturers and professional  
servicers of consumer electronics
products. Further information on this and related issues can be found  
on the HRRC website,
www.hrrc.org.


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