Those that oppose CEA’s petition seeking clarification or reconsi...
Those that oppose CEA’s petition seeking clarification or reconsideration of V-chip rules for DTV have “completely mischaracterized” the nature of that petition, CEA told the Commission in reply comments. Contrary to statements by the Coalition for Independent Ratings Services…
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that the CE industry wanted to undermine the flexibility in ratings systems the FCC seeks, CEA said its only aim was “to implement this flexibility while maintaining some semblance of usability.” CEA said its request to have the Commission specify the rating region code that activates V-chip operation has been confused by those who believe that CEA’s request would somehow limit the ratings systems that can be transmitted in the rating region table. “Specifying rating region codes in advance has always been the intended approach in the PSIP system” of DTV, CEA said. “Doing so allows the receiver to pull the correct rating information simply by knowing in what region the receiver is operating,” it said. It said DTVs that are compliant with the proposed rules in the U.S. will process 2 ratings codes -- one “locked” to existing V-chip specifications, the other “being completely flexible to process whatever rating region table is delivered in the transport stream.” As for the licensing of V-chip by patent holder Tri-Vision, CEA urged the FCC to accept Tri-Vision’s stated offer to “do whatever is necessary” to assure that license terms are fair and reasonable. TiVo, in separate comments supporting CEA’s petition, urged the FCC to go a step further in assuring that Tri-Vision doesn’t gain a patent windfall at the expense of consumers. It urged the Commission to confirm “that so long as a DTV product is able to process new ratings systems, it need not utilize the same technology or processes protected by the Tri-Vision patents.” TiVo said it believes it can design its own devices capable of accommodating any new ratings systems “that would render licensing of the Tri-Vision patents unnecessary.” It also urged that the FCC protect those companies that have no choice but to license the Tri-Vision patents. “If the Commission endorses a rule where only Tri-Vision legally can produce or license the right to produce compliant devices, the Commission has a special responsibility to ensure that all regulated entities have access to the license on roughly the same terms,” TiVo said.