This just absolutely boggles my mind. Don't the studios get it? If I want to watch their shows, make it easy for me to do so. If I miss an episode of a serialized show, let me watch it some other way, otherwise I'm likely not to bother with the rest of the season because I'll be lost.
But studios don't get it. They're trying to get broadcast flag in all the transmissions and forcing all equipment to be able to recognize it and do what it's told. If the flag says don't record, the device (be it a VCR, DVD-Recorder, Tivo, etc.) won't let you record it. Studio's want this because they fear their shows being recorded digitally and put on the internet for others to download.
Now for broadcast TV I see the fear, people who download don't watch commercials and commercials pay the bill. But now HBO wants its programming to be off-limits for DVRs too. Now I already pay a subscription fee for HBO and they don't do commercials, so this is just rude. If Deadwood conflicts with something why shouldn't I be able to record the 3am show and watch it when I have time? The article posits that they want me to pay for On Demand to see that episode. Oh and if I do pay extra for On Demand, I can't Tivo that either. My cable bill is high enough, they are just greedy.
People have to reread the Sony decision and studios have to understand that new technology is new opportunities. If they had succeeded in banning VCRs, who much money would they have lost? I wonder how iTunes video sales are doing?
2 comments:
But let's say you have HBO and I don't. You can record The Sopranos and give me a copy, and then I don't have to subscribe to HBO.
Incidentally with my cable system, I get HBO On Demand with a subscription to HBO (which I don't have). There was a promotion last year where I got HBO and HBO On Demand for a weekend. I recorded the entire fifth season of Six Feet Under from HBO On Demand (onto VHS) and then didn't subscribe to HBO.
Me giving you a copy of the Sopranos is probably wrong. I say probably because you might like it and then buy the DVDs or subscribe to HBO which I imagine HBO would like. I'm not sure if giving you one episode is considered fair use or not. Giving you a whole season is certainly illegal.
But that's all true under existing law. No need to prevent me from making my own copy and using it as I want. Why shouldn't you be able to record a show and bring it to your beach house to watch? Or to your friends house to watch it with them. You could invite them over too or will they start charging based on individual viewers and not households?
Incidently, HBO takes the risk when they do promotions that not everyone will buy as a result. Nothing wrong with that either.
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