Digital Technology for Digital Living.
July 29, 2004
TV Networks React To PVRs.
Yesterday we mentioned Ice, a possible new PVR and service available in Australia. Today news.com.au has a follow up article that discusses the reaction from the TV networks, who in general seem to be putting on a brave face. One issue a Seven spokesman mentioned, and could suggest an underlying message, was their copyright ownership of the TV guides and that they “licensed him or any other set-top box manufacturer to use our information for this purpose”. Them’s be brave words, especially when Ice works around this issue by creating their own guide and using human operators to send signals via a digital radio signal, which prompts the set-top box when there are adverts or a change in programing.
Recently, a group of Australian TiVo hackers, OzTiVo, found out how the networks feel about using their guide data. HWW, a company in Sydney, create and syndicate the networks data to a collection of sources, including some of the web sites that OzTiVo used to create their own TV Guide data, so that the U.S. TiVos that they import and modify work with Aussie TV. In June, HWW requested, siting licensing issues with networks, that the group “please immediately cease taking or assisting in taking (including promoting and/or writing software for ’scraping’ or ‘grabbing’) TV listings from all these sites … as this is in direct breach of copyright”.
Initially the 400 strong groups reaction was one of disbelief. Many thought out loud that surely copyright didn’t cover this type of activity. Some brief research by members at the Australian Copyright Council Online Information Centre site confirmed the request was legit. Next came a few calls to request a cheap hobbiest license, which was quickly deflated when HWW replied it was not possible due to lack of rights. Others suggested withdrawing to an underground community, doing as they please without oversight from legal authority. Others pointed to a recent Australian PC Magazine article where Paul Marshell, HWW’s CEO, was quoted discussing the issue of digital rights management causing issues with licensing an Electronic Program Guide for Windows XP Media Center Edition 2004, which is due for release in Australia soon. Was there a conspiracy to shut down alternatives and own the market?
Eventually the group decided on their own workaround. A distributed Australian TV Guide, partially scraped and some data manually entered by a group of enthusiasts. Currently it’s a work in progress, with a dedicated group coding a new online guide that is intended for use by the TiVo users in Australia, with the ability to provide guides for other PVRs like MythTV.
Add a peer-to-peer network and client to the TV Guide and then I think we’re on a winner.
Gadgetman | | PVR, Video, Digital TV
