Like Dinosaurs with a Missile Launcher
Old media worldwide fights tooth and nail against new, enabling technology that they don’t control. See how Nine net takes on IceTV in court over their time shifting technology.
Free-to-air web the Nine Network goes to court Monday in a bid to stop startup media company IceTV from using its TiVo-style technology to block ads on free-to-air television.
IceTV uses a set-top box and weekly TV sked to allow users to record their fave skeins and skip ads for just A$3 ($2.25) a week.
Nine will argue in court that providing its schedule is a breach of copyright, although the schedule is made available to feevee customers and even to printed TV guides.
This is just an inevitable delay in the technology’s widespread availability, like it is everywhere else. Granted, in America the big media companies have been able to push back our Fair Use rights with odious technology initiatives such as DRM/”Trusted computing,” and hardware interfaces such as HDMI and non-modifiable, non-skippable DVD menus, and legal efforts such as the DMCA… but in Australia they’re apparently still a bit behind the times.
What will happen is that eventually every show will run inline advertisements (like soccer has to, with the stadium ringed with ads and small placements by the clocks) and egregious product placements (more egregious, I should say). It’s the only way for advertisers to ensure that they’re getting the eyeballs their consumerist drives require of them. Eventually, the 22 minute show in a 30 minute slot is going to go the way of the dodo.
