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TiVo-like Application for XM Radio Under Fire
Strudelkugel writes "USA Today reports: 'Catching Blondie's reunion tour broadcast at 4 in the morning wasn't an option for XM satellite radio subscriber and single father Scott MacLean. "I was missing concerts that were being broadcasted when I was asleep or out," he said. So the 35-year-old computer programmer from Ottawa, Ontario, wrote a piece of software that let him record the show directly onto his PC hard drive while he snoozed.' As expected, the lawyers are coming out. Seems like a good idea, though. This capability might actually entice me to get an XM radio."
They're just upset because they're planning on introducing a similar feature in a couple months. I don't see how this is much different than something like Total Recorder. Just recording for yourself (time shifting) is perfectly legal fair use.
From TFA-
Music labels fear that the convenience of MacLean's software will lead millions more to copy and distribute songs over file-sharing networks such as KaZaA, a music industry source said.
"Millions more"? Aren't there a hell of a lot of people sharing music as it is? Something like 60 million people?
Even if all 2.1 million subscribers jump on the bandwagon, 2 million subcribers (Q2 - 2004, XM website) seems like a drop in the bucket.....TFA states that only something like 2400 subscribers have gotten a copy. 400 have paid.....The RIAA's got plenty more people to sue, and an archaic business model to sustain......
A thought though - if they aren't sharing, but only recording copies to listen to, doesn't that fall under fair use somewhere? Time shifting != illegal, right?
"
the Recording Industry Association of America said his organization had not reviewed the software, but said that in principle it was disturbed by the idea."
Tell us something we don't already know......
-thewldisntenuff
My MythTV HowTo
There really isn't much hacking involved in making this application.
The XM-PCR device is an XM tuner that is controled by USB, but returns its audio to the PC by the line in port on a soundcard. The audio is digital comming off the XM signal, but it's analog by the time it leaves the black box. So, all the computer needs to do is activate a recorder on the line in port and away it goes...
There's drivers on the XM site for Windows, Mac and Linux. They're actively encuraging development, so it's not surprising somebody would come up with this idea.
What laws exactly is this breaking?
I've got to be honest - I dont see how the RIAA lawyers can come down on this one. This kind of "Tivo like" software seems to be just a natural extension of the VCR time shifting as mentioned in the Sony Betamax case. As such, it is a perfectly legal use, regardless of what the RIAA fears that it will or could be used for.
.02
Just my
So the 35-year-old computer programmer from Ottawa, Ontario, wrote a piece of software that let him record the show directly onto his PC hard drive while he snoozed
Just like a legal timer record function on a VCR. How in the hell are the lawyers expecting to beat that precedent?
From the article, for those who didn't RTFA
"We remain concerned about any devices or software that permit listeners to transform a broadcast into a music library," RIAA spokesman Jonathan Lamy said.
Analog tape recorders have allowed people to add broadcasts to their music libraries since before I was born.
All this software does is make it a little more convienent than plugging an analog tape recorder into your XM receiver. It's stupid that they'd even consult their lawyers about this.
LK
"Hi. This is my friend, Jack Shit, and you don't know him." - Lord Kano
They release a radio with USB connectivity and are surprised when someone figures out a neat and easy way to "Tivo" their content? Funniest reference in the article was to the fact that the RIAA and XM are busy figuring out if any copyright laws or user agreements were broken. Management really should have gotten a handle on this before the product was released.
why do I keep hitting the hjkl(s) key all the time in this editor?......
When digital radio (music + sub-band containing song information) becomes mainstream, won't this type of software bring 'piracy' to the masses? Save every song onto your computer with appropriate ID3 tag, scan through every day and find the ones you like, delete the ones you don't. Even easier than recording internet radio.
"I think it would be a good idea" Gandhi, on Western Civilisation
The MPAA already lost that battle for them. There is no way that a device which has as its primary purpose time shifting can be contributory negligence unless the entire premise of Sony vs Universal is overturned by another supreme court ruling (which would be a travesty).
There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.
Since last I looked XM isn't a licenced broadcast undertaking in Canada.
http://nerosoft.com/TimeTrax/index.asp
Since XM made the SDK for the USB XM radio in question, this is ridiculous. I don't see how this software could do anything but get them more subscribers & sell more radios. Go ahead and shoot yourself in the foot XM.
Given the courts decisions which have established
time shifting as a legitimate use of consumer recording technology, it's damned hard to imagine what law they think consumers might be breaking. It is not illegal for me to tape every broadcast of a television show and to build my own personal library. It would seem very difficult to argue that doing the same thing using XM radio would be any different.
There is much pleasure to be gained in useless knowledge.
the riaa and mpaa are really stretching the term 'copyright infringement' if they weren't already from the get-go.
how can recording a service you legally subscribe to for your own personal use be even thought of as being illegal?
unless he's using the recordings to sell as a product, or to re-broadcast himself, there is nothing remotely illegal about anything of this nature. and if there is, the laws need to be changed.
Man I cannot BELIEVE that people are saying stuff like this with a straight face:
... It's our expectation they will be shut down," he added. "We're also researching any potential legal violations.")))
.. provide the company with a list of purchasers.)))
((("That's a product that's not authorized by XM," Chance Patterson, vice president of corporate affairs, told Reuters last week.)))
Excuse me, but why does the world need YOUR permission to record broadcasts? Can I set my coffee cup next to the radio and illegally alter it's temperature?
I know the law is fucked up right now but this kind of stuff still continues to amaze me.
Yes, it's not authorized by XM, so what?
((("That program is something we don't condone
I was actually thinking of buying an XM radio and recording shows was a *specific feature I wanted*. I was planning on writing my own program to do what this guy is selling. How hard can it be? When I was a kid I used to record the radio all the time, that's probably why I'm a big music buyer now.
I'm not going to bother. XM is spawned from the same primordial ooze that the RIAA crawled from. These guys are all the same. You can't even jerk off within 10 feet of their "licensed product" without paying a fee.
(((Michael McGuire, an analyst at technology research firm Gartner. "It's very hard for policy and copyright law to keep up with the pace of technological change.")))
What does copyright law need to do, make sure it gets in the way of any product that comes out? It's funny how we have this constitution that's supposed to be a firewall from government, but it has a big open port: the copyright clause. Pretty soon, are whole legal system will revolve around some form of copyright, since everything is based on information. Just amazing and frightening.
((("We remain concerned about any devices or software that permit listeners to transform a broadcast into a music library,")))
Un-fucking-believable. One thing is for certain, you're not transforming any of my money into vacations in Europe anytime soon, Mr. RIAA exec.
(((In a letter seen by Reuters, XM's lawyers told MacLean to
And what will they do with that list I wonder? Report it to Tom Ridge? What on earth?????
20 years ago this kind of stuff would be great satire. I can't imagine what 20 years from now will be like. And honestly, I I don't want to.
Why is it that entertainment producers work so hard to make their products not entertaining? To me, it seems pretty retarded, but, perhaps, I'm just not as wise and all-seeing as they are.
-- "Makes Little Debbie look like a pile of puke!" - Moe Szyslak
I'm all for supporting the artists, but I am already paying 10 bucks a month for XM radio (actually it'll be about 21 a month, with my second radio, and the Opie and Anthony premium subscriptions). If I want to record a few songs for my own personal use, as long as I don't put them up on Kazaa, who the hell's business is that - this is supposed to be my damned right, and the artists ARE getting paid. XM needs to pull the stick out of its ass re: their EULA, and the RIAA needs to die.
You can't sell people on a product (the XM PCR) and the freedoms and flexibility it gives you (seriously, read their marketing copy selling these things), then get pissed when people start paying you money in order to take advantage of its freedoms and flexibility using third party software.
Before you jump for Sirius, just notice that XM put out a piece of hardware that is surprisingly easy to control by homebrew code, and also outputs audio in the form of an easily recordable analog line out wire. I don't know of any Sirius unit that is similar to the XM PCR unit.
They haven't sued the guy, they've just had their lawyer send a nasty-worded letter that the software writer correctly knew he could ignore. So far they've just gone through the motions of being upset without actually doing anything to harm the guy.
What's scary isn't the application itself -- it's the idea that a company can demand the list of purchasers.
WTF? They're going to go after people recording songs off the radio now?
i just bought one of these XM PCRs. i have been thinking about XM for quite a while, mostly for my car, but when i heard about this TimeTrax software, and found out the receiver is only ~$40, i bought one right away. after listening to it for a week (and being able to take it on vacation, along with my laptop) i hink xm is much better than am/fm. there is a much wider variety of stations (25 rock/hits stations, compared to 6 or 7) and they play a lot of good new music, and old music. (and, also a lot of the same crap on regular radio, but i think the good stuff more than makes up for it).
so anyway, i love the idea of timetrax. it's not like i'm going to record everything off of xm, and then cancel my subscription, and then never buy a cd. rather, there are some songs i would like to listen to a few more times than they get played, and i want to be able to record shows that i'd miss otherwise, or might want to listen to again sometime. i understand that officially, XM can't support actions like this, but threatening legal action against it only gonna piss people off, and i bet this functionality will end up selling a lot of these XM PCRs. i'm one new subscriber already.
Catching Blondie's reunion tour broadcast at 4 in the morning wasn't an option for XM satellite radio subscriber
So he stayed up till 4AM programming.
Yes, but only once, and in doing so, he taught the world how to fish.
--
Was it the sheep climbing onto the altar, or the cattle lowing to be slain,
or the Son of God hanging dead and bloodied on a cross that told me this was a world condemned, but loved and bought with blood.
They haven't sued the guy, they've just had their lawyer send a nasty-worded letter
And I didn't punch him in the face, I just said I would and then took a fake swing. Guess what: that's illegal, as it should be. How is this any different?
Cheers.
Here's the deal. XM has no problem with people writing software to control the XMPCR. I doubt they had a problem with this guy writing software to record from the XMPCR. The problem lies in that the guy tried to profit from it. I bet if he would have just given away the software, they would have let it slide.
As I've said so many times before, when are the media companies going to realize that the shift has happened. I'm sure the buggy whip manufacturera bemoaned the advent of the high-tech automobile and might have even wanted to outlaw them or require that all automobiles, by law, have to sport a fully functional buggy whip, but it didn't happen that way.
Big media, instead of plugging the dike with thumb-like legal shenannigans, should be expending their efforts in finding a new business model that will actually work instead of pissing off their paying customers. The march of technology is relentless and people are resourceful. It's nothing but a losing game for RIAA and MPAA to try and stop it. Wake up, folks.
"Do the Right Thing. It will gratify some people and astound the rest." - Mark Twain
"Do the Right Thing. It will gratify some people and astound the rest." - Mark Twain
The Canadian Content requirements are not that unreasonable, given the abysmal quality and immense quantity of the content that comes from the south.
I call bullshit on that statement. First of all, the ruling authority is the Sony vs. Universal (Betamax) case which grants individuals the fair use right to record television shows for personal viewing and sharing, also called timeshifting.
It would seem that the same rule would apply to radio broadcasts. Therefore, your argument is that a stated more restrictive license would overrule this fair use right. That is completely untested in court and there are no legal authorities which support that specific position.
The counter-argument is that there are certain rights that simply cannot be contracted away, even if they are explicitly restricted in a license. For example, take the reverse engineering restriction found in almost all licenses. It's basically unenforceable. In every case where there was pure reverse engineering, the licensor who sues has lost on the fair use grounds.
None of us knows what courts will decide. The DMCA throws another challenge into the point because I am sure XM Radio encrypts their data so the technical method for doing the timeshifting could be important to some judges. But in the end, until a court says so, the issue is not clear.
It's different because you have no right to physically harm him, and to threaten to do so causes him undue emotional pain so that's illegal too.
They, however, have a right to sue him at any time. I in fact could sue you right now if I felt like it... oh, I have no chance of winning such a lawsuit because I have no idea what it would be about, but our system doesn't have much if any penality for filing a worthless lawsuit, so threatening to file a worthless lawsuit certainly doesn't merit any penality.