Will
the FCC manage, once again, to dictate how TVs are made? A group called Public
Knowledge is challenging a new FCC regulation meant to prevent the sharing of
TV programs over the internet. The hearings begin in the U.S. Court of Appeals
tomorrow.
If
the courts side with the FCC, the new rule would require the addition of a
“no-no” flag to all digital TVs (and all other consumer electronics that are
able to receive these digital signals over the air) made after July 1. This
flag would prevent any content from being distributed to non-“no-no” flag
compliant devices.
Of
course, this won’t prevent the 95% of us who do not own digital TVs from
pirating away.
UPDATE: A law student blogger attended the hearing today (2/22/05) in D.C., and you can read his notes here. According to CNET, 2 out of 3 judges thought the FCC jumped the gun, as they had no approval from congress to implement this change.
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