DISNEY SAYS OTHER 5 STUDIOS ARE NEAR DEAL ON COPY PROTECTION
Five major Hollywood studios have all but signed off on proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that would endorse 5C DTV copy protection technology standard, Disney said. Preston Padden, Disney exec. vp-govt. relations, told us that proposed agreement would be “substantially similar” to licensing pact that Sony Pictures Entertainment and Warner Bros. signed with leading TV set makers and software developers represented by 5C group earlier this week (CD July 18 p2). But, he said, 5-studio agreement also would include provision of watermark detection to control Internet retransmission of broadcast programming, clearing away main hurdle to copy protection pacts among studios and broadcast networks. “This would get all 7 studios in alignment,” he said.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Communications Daily is required reading for senior executives at top telecom corporations, law firms, lobbying organizations, associations and government agencies (including the FCC). Join them today!
Padden said proposed MOU, which awaits final approval by one unnamed studio executive, will be submitted soon to Digital Transmission Licensing Administrator (DTLA), or 5C group, for review. He said he was “guardedly optimistic” that DTLA officials, who have been discussing watermark idea with studios, would approve proposal. “There are lots of signs that all of the parties are closer to a consensus than they have ever been,” Padden said. “I'm more optimistic than I have been.”
If all 7 film studios conclude deals with DTLA, that would remove one of biggest obstacles to nation’s DTV transition, which has lagged behind pace expected by lawmakers and regulators. Movie studios and their allied broadcast networks have steered away from producing much digital programming so far because of concerns about DTV copyright protection, particularly for over-the-air broadcasts that can’t be protected by 5C software in cable and satellite set-top boxes. In recent months, studios and broadcasters have fiercely lobbied Congress and FCC for help, especially against unauthorized copying and retransmission of their programming over Internet. “The primary concern is with respect to Internet distribution,” Padden said.
DTLA Pres. Michael Ayres said he had heard about proposed MoU in “the past 24 hours” but hadn’t received anything directly from 5 studios -- Disney, MGM, Paramount, 20th Century Fox, Universal. “We're certainly eager to look at whatever proposal Preston and his colleagues have come up with,” he said. “We'll see how it goes.” But he expressed reservations about watermarking detection concept for broadcast programming, raising technical and governance issues. “This would not be a tomorrow sort of thing,” he said.
News of studio movement on DTV copyright protection comes as lawmakers and regulators express growing frustration with slow pace of talks among broadcast, cable, consumer electronics and movie industries. In most-recent case, FCC Cable Bureau Chief Kenneth Ferree complained that lack of interindustry cooperation was hampering digital transition. Speaking Tues. at New England Cable TV Assn. convention in Newport, R.I., he reportedly warned that his bureau might have to impose technical standards and rules if industries couldn’t develop them on their own. Ferree, who recently pretended to shop for DTV set at Best Buy store and was told that set wouldn’t work with cable, said he was frustrated with issue and understood consumers’ frustration as well.
Meanwhile, CableLabs praised copyright agreement struck by Sony and Warner Bros. with DTLA. CableLabs Pres. Richard Green called accord “a real step forward” because it was first deal between broadcast programmers and equipment makers. “It’s very encouraging to us to see an agreement between the content providers and the hardware providers,” said Green, whose group has developed similar copy protection software for digital cable set- top boxes. “We think that many of the things agreed to here are parallel to ours [our license].”
CEA also praised Sony-Warner Bros. deal. CEA Pres. Gary Shapiro said licensing agreement was “a laudable achievement that will benefit the digital television transition and American consumers.” He called on other 5 studios to “follow the lead of Sony and Warner to help move the DTV transition forward.” In addition, he urged all studios to “ensure that Americans’ normal and customary fair-use rights are preserved in the digital age.” - - Alan Breznick