[mythtv-users] ofcom consultation on BBC/freeview HD DRM

[Dan]

BTW if you're in the UK and want to reply, I'd suggest you don't
copy-and-paste my response but try and put in in your own terms from
your own angle. I know that's trickier...

2010/2/18 Dan <dansto.well+myth at gmail.com>:
> My response to Question 7, "Do stakeholders agree that the BBC’s
> proposed Huffman Code licensing arrangements would have a negligible
> effect on the market for HD DTT receivers?":
>
> Unfortunately not. The consultation document discusses compatibility
> with open-source systems and considers that because some existing
> linux-based freesat receivers "implement similar content management
> technologies" that there is therefore no licensing issue which would
> prevent open-source software from implementing the BBC's licensed
> lookup table.
>
> However this is mistaken. The assertion makes a confusion between an
> open-source operating system (linux) and open-source software that
> runs on top of the operating system. The operating system is
> essentially irrelevant for this issue; it is the software which would
> need to implement the algorithm in question, and the BBC's proposed
> licensing requires an undertaking which is directly incompatible with
> standard open-source licenses (such as the GPL and LGPL) which do not
> permit the use of source code to have such undertakings enforced
> (since that limits the freedom of use which the licenses are intended
> to preserve).
>
> Hence the proposed licensing limits the market, not for linux-based
> receivers, but for receivers of any type which use open-source (eg GPL
> or LGPL) software for the application layer. This of course limits
> opportunities for commercial developments for startups using free
> software as a basis, which is increasingly a very common way for
> technology startups to develop their IP platform.
>
>
> Dan
>
>
>
> 2010/1/22 Joseph Heenan <joseph at heenan.me.uk>:
>> Hi all,
>>
>> There's now a public consultation on the BBCs proposal to add DRM to
>> freeview DTT, which opened today:
>>
>> http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2010/01/22/ofcom_freeview_hd_drm_consultation/
>>
>> Consultation closes at the beginning of April.
>>
>> Although availability to open source is mentioned, it seems unlikely that
>> the terms can be compatible with the GPL, hence preventing such content
>> being view in mythtv.
>>
>> (It also seems like a bad idea to implement a UK specific system. It would
>> be highly unlikely to actually prevent the HD content reaching the internet,
>> making the additional complexity and expense completely unwarranted. Not to
>> mention that the lack of such a system for SD content has caused zero
>> issues.)
>>
>> summary:
>>
>> http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/content_mngt/summary/
>>
>> full doc:
>>
>> http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/content_mngt/condoc.pdf
>>
>> respond online:
>>
>> https://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/content_mngt/howtorespond/form
>>
>>
>>
>> Joseph
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>>
>
>
>
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> http://www.mcld.co.uk
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