Losing Control of Your TV

sp00 writes "The MPAA is now trying to prevent high quality copies made from TV broadcasts. The latest anti-piracy move will prevent you from making high-quality copies of broadcast TV programs. And the new "broadcast flag" technology enables all manner of other restrictions. In the future, the Motion Picture Association of America will control your television set."

Comments

If they want control.....

[gillrock]

Then I want control over the price....

If I don't own the TV set outright, I shouldn't have to pay $3000 for a plasma TV. I think I should only have to pay $3.

Re:What about low-quality copies?

[SoupGuru]

Low quality? You mean there's something better than VHS out there?

Something about this confuses me

[Anonymous Coward]

High quality? TV broadcasts? This does not compute.

It's the show

[AtariAmarok]

Come to think of it, it is impossible to make a "high quality" anything if the TV show concerned is "Dharma and Greg". I think the entire UPN network will be exempt from these restrictions too. (I'd mention the ABC network, but I didn't think it was around anymore)

Re:What about low-quality copies?

[pilgrim23]

Indeed. Seems to me that if this only applies to High Quality TV then, given the current status of the art, there is nothing to block. I stopped watching TV over a decade ago. Only High Quality on TV any more is the drug ads.

Dunno about your TV

[jefdiesel]

Dunno about your tv.. but mine has all kinds of cool moving pictures. They dance, and laugh, and shoot each other, and on Cop Rock, they even SING!

Re:Time to drag out this old chestnut, It might ap

[AtariAmarok]

First they came for the ooffshore pirate DVD factories,
and I didn't speak up,
because I wasn't an offshore DVD pirate.
Then they came for the Kazaa users,
and I didn't speak up,
because I didn't use Kazaa.
Then they came for the VHS copiers,
and I didn't speak up,
because I still used Betemax.
Then they came for me,
and I turned off the set.

I don't think they need to worry.

[Java Pimp]

Who is actually recording television anymore? With what they consider quality television, I'm surprized more people aren't doing more interesting things like taking a Craftsman cordless drill to the soles of their feet or jamming needles in their armpits.

The revolution will be televised...

[Omega]

The revolution will be televised...

Please check with the MPAA to acquire a license to view the revolution.

Re:Get rid of it

[ChrisN79]

Obligatory link to Onion article about guy who doesn't own television:

http://www.theonion.com/onion3604/doesnt_own_telev ision.html

Re:Thank our government for this!

[Christianfreak]

[tin foil hat]

Yeah and next they're going to put in a battery backup so that even when you unplug it just keeps playing forever.

And then they'll make them so that it contains nano-bots that repair everything if you try to physically break the hardware.
[/tin foil hat]

Re:What about low-quality copies?

[sik0fewl]

Low quality? You mean there's something better than VHS out there?

Where have you been? Of course there's something better. It's called Betamax.

Re:What about low-quality copies?

[threephaseboy]

This DVD Decoder removes noise and disturbing signals.

I dont think it works. I watched Hannibal thru it and it was still disturbing.

Licensing Agreement

[Detritus]

The DVD licensing agreement says that a player has to implement the standard set of software that controls the user interface to the DVD. That puts the producer of the DVD in charge of what you can and can't do with the remote control.

There is nothing wrong with your television set. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling the transmission. If we wish to make it louder, we will bring up the volume. If we wish to make it softer, we will tune it to a whisper. We will control the horizontal. We will control the vertical. We can roll the image; make it flutter. We can change the focus to a soft blur or sharpen it to crystal clarity.