[mythtv-users] Heads up Aussies - EPG supply in Australia

[Bruce Nordstrand]

Rev Simon Rumble wrote:
> Yep, this from Crikey:
> ICE TV ices Nine in court. The Nine Network (AKA The Titanic) has had 
> another loss. Its attempts to monster Sydney based ICE TV over the 
> latter's construction of an electronic program guide, have failed. In 
> the Federal Court today Justice Annabelle Bennett ruled against Nine. 
> Nine had accused ICE TV of breaching copyright by reproducing its TV 
> schedules in electronic form. It claimed a further infringement because 
> people can use digital recorders to make copies of TV programs. ICE TV 
> disputed the claims. It says it puts together its program guide from 
> publicly available information, writes its own program descriptions. ICE 
> TV says it makes the software so people can record television programs, 
> but says it's not responsible for people using PCs or digital recorders 
> to make copies or skip the ads and that's the real issue. Today, in 
> Sydney, Justice Annabelle Bennett agreed that Nine owned the copyright 
> to its program guide but dismissed Nine's claim on the basis that ICE TV 
> "does not reproduce a substantial part of" Nine's guide. She agreed with 
> ICE TV that its EPG was compiled independently and ordered Nine to pay 
> ICE TV's costs. That's another little financial headache the old Nine 
> owners, the Packers, have handed the new owners, CVC. The irony is that 
> Nine is now part of the TV industry’s FTA electronic program guide, 
> which will allow anyone to access and record programs. The only proviso 
> is that the DVR/PVR makers must, as FTA Australia says must comply with 
> "base-level requirements designed to protect copyright, protect the 
> integrity of the program information and facilitate collection of 
> ratings information". That will force manufacturers to alter their 
> machines for the Australian market and leave owners of current DVR/PVRs 
> which don't meet these requirements, out in the cold.
>
> Article in Sydney Morning Herald:
> http://www.smh.com.au/news/home-theatre/nine-loses-program-guide-case/2007/08/09/1186530493565.html
>
> IceTV news:
> http://www.icetv.com.au/news/?p=44
>
>   
Ah, not quite open slather for us but still good news. I wonder if 
systems like Myth & MCE will be allowed to use the freely available EPG 
data seeing as there are requirements for units like the Tivo system 
Channel 7 will be selling?

Cheers
Bruce