I learned something this morning -- the Free Culture Movement still hates copyrights. I probably could have guessed that without a stroll over to the National Press Club, though.

I attended this morning a press conference organized by CEA, Public Knowledge, Media Access Project, EFF and CCIA to announce a new coalition targeting copyrights. In anticipation of the event, PFF published a Progress Snapshot I wrote addressing the coalition titled "Recognizing the Vibrant Market for Digital Content." But my efforts to substantively and dispassionately address the vexing issues in the copyright debate were probably not needed, for the event never reached that level of depth.

Continue reading This Just In: Dogs Still Hate Cats . . .

posted by Patrick Ross @ 1:08 PM | Access: Commons, Fair Use, Orphan Works, Public Domain , Analog Holes , DMCA , DRM & Watermarks, etc. , Free Culture Movement , Legislation and Legislators , Markets: Business, Investment & Innovation

Link to this Entry | Printer-Friendly | Email a Comment | Post a Comment (0)

Senate Commerce held a hearing yesterday on the Broadcast and Audio Flag.

Statements are available from:

Opening Remarks:

Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK), Committee Chairman,
Sen. Daniel K. Inouye (D-HI), Committee Co-Chairman

Andy Setos, President of Engineering, Fox Entertainment Group
Jonathan Band, Counsel, American Library Association
Thomas B. Patton, Corporate VP of Government Relations, Philips Electronics North America Corporation
Leslie Harris, Executive Director, Center for Democracy and Technology

Mitch Bainwol, Chairman & CEO, Recording Industry Association of America
Gary Shapiro, President & CEO, Consumers Electronics Association
Dan Halyburton, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Group Operations, Susquehanna Radio

posted by James DeLong @ 11:28 AM | Analog Holes

Link to this Entry | Printer-Friendly | Email a Comment | Post a Comment (0)

The witness list for tomorrow's House Judiciary Oversight Hearing on Content Protection in the Digital Age: The Broadcast Flag, High-Definition Radio, and the Analog Hole (Rayburn HOB 2141 at 2:00 p.m.):

Honorable Dan Glickman -- Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA)

Mitch Bainwol -- Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)

Gigi B. Sohn -- President, Public Knowledge

Michael D. Petricone -- Vice President, Government Affairs, Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) on behalf of CEA and the Home Recording Rights Coalition.

posted by James DeLong @ 2:34 PM | Analog Holes

Link to this Entry | Printer-Friendly | Email a Comment | Post a Comment (0)

PFF's Congressional Seminar on "The Future of The Broadcast Flag: Implications for Congress, the FCC and the DTV Transition" (Friday, May 20, noon-2:00 in Longworth 1537) is a hot ticket.

Register online. Media questions: Patrick Ross at 202-289-8928 or pross@pff.org. Other questions: Richard Zielinski at 202-289-8928 or rzielinski@pff.org.

posted by James DeLong @ 9:15 AM | Analog Holes

Link to this Entry | Printer-Friendly | Email a Comment | Post a Comment (0)

This quote may be apocryphal, but Will Rogers once said that if two people share the same opinion, one of them isn't needed. Jim, Solveig and I often share the same opinion on this blog, which would seem to make me useless, but I think I come at the broadcast flag from a slightly different viewpoint from Jim and so, to prove my relevance, I have decided to post on it.

It's taken me a few days because what I'll be revealing here is that, years into the debate, I'm still not sure what I think. I will do my best to organize my thoughts, though, which are that the flag is a relatively harmless form of protection that has a lot of merit, but that the entry of the FCC into the world of copyright was not in any way a good one, and a voluntary industry solution would have been far preferable.

Continue reading Broadcast Flag -- Arguing with Myself . . .

posted by Patrick Ross @ 3:45 PM | Analog Holes

Link to this Entry | Printer-Friendly | Email a Comment | Post a Comment (0)

On Friday, May 20, PFF will host a Congressional Seminar on The Future of The Broadcast Flag: Implications for Congress, the FCC and the DTV Transition.

Panelists: John Rogovin (former FCC GC); Fritz Attaway (MPAA Executive VP); James Burger (Dow Lohnes). PFF's Solveig Singleton will moderate.

Time: 12:00 - 2 p.m. in the Longworth House Office Building, Room 1537. Lunch will be served.

Registration: Online.

Media questions: Patrick Ross at 202-289-8928 or pross@pff.org.
Other questions: Richard Zielinski at 202-289-8928 or rzielinski@pff.org.

posted by James DeLong @ 1:43 PM | Analog Holes

Link to this Entry | Printer-Friendly | Email a Comment | Post a Comment (0)

The D.C. Circuit has thrown out the FCC's Broadcast Flag rule.

C|Net News calls it "a stunning victory for hardware makers and television buffs."

But perhaps a tad more ambivalence is in order. Regardless of the legal merits (the decision turned on the FCC's statutory power), it is simplistic to see this as a content vs. tech & consumers fight. The blunt fact is, if content cannot be protected then it will not be produced. So a "victory" in such circumstances might turn out to be rather hypothetical -- viewers would be able to share content freely if only there were anything worth sharing.

Much of the tech industry was aware of this, and acquiesced in the rule.

So if this was a victory for TV buffs -- have fun, guys. There will be lots of interesting test patterns. Or, of course, you can watch cable and satellite, which will be able to carry DRM protected content. The word for such victories is "Pyrrhic."

posted by James DeLong @ 11:36 AM | Analog Holes

Link to this Entry | Printer-Friendly | Email a Comment | Post a Comment (0)

Judging by the reactions of the judges during oral argument last Tuesday, as described by Declan McCullagh, the future of the FCC's Broadcast Flag rule is not bright:

Two of the three judges on the District of Columbia Circuit panel said the FCC never received permission from Congress to undertake such a sweeping regulation. . . . "You're out there in the whole world, regulating. Are washing machines next?" asked Judge Harry Edwards. Quipped Judge David Sentelle: "You can't regulate washing machines. You can't rule the world."

A detailed description of the argument is at Luminousvoid.

posted by James DeLong @ 8:37 AM | Analog Holes

Link to this Entry | Printer-Friendly | Email a Comment | Post a Comment (0)