FC: Hollywood lobbyists laud SSSCA as "exceedingly reasonable" bill

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,46671,00.html

   Hollywood Loves Hollings' Bill
   By Declan McCullagh (declan () wired com)

   2:00 a.m. Sep. 11, 2001 PDT

   WASHINGTON -- Entertainment industry lobbyists say programmers and
   open-source activists should not be alarmed by a controversial
   proposal to embed copy-protection controls in nearly all PCs and
   consumer electronic devices.

   In interviews Monday, representatives of the Walt Disney Company and
   News Corp. defended a draft of the Security Systems Standards and
   Certification Act (SSSCA) as a reasonable compromise that will spur
   high-speed Internet access, boost hardware and thwart piracy.

   "This is an exceedingly moderate and reasonable approach," said
   Preston Padden, executive vice president of the Walt Disney Company,
   which helped to craft the legislation.

   Wired News has obtained a draft of the SSSCA, which Sen. Fritz
   Hollings (D-South Carolina), chairman of the Senate Commerce
   committee, plans to introduce this month.

   "We think it's likely to jumpstart the broadband revolution, because
   entertainment content will create consumer demand," Padden said. "If
   you're a computer company or if you make hubs and routers or if you're
   trying to build a broadband network, you want this bill."

   [...]




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