[mythtv-users] tivo patents cover mythtv?

Simon Hobson linux at thehobsons.co.uk
Sat Mar 6 21:21:30 UTC 2010


John Drescher wrote:

>  >> providing at least one Input Section, wherein said Input Section converts
>>>  said specific program to an Moving Pictures Experts Group (MPEG) formatted
>>>  stream for internal transfer and manipulation;
>>
>  > Myth doesn't do that.
>
>This sounds exactly what MythTV does.

Actually it doesn't do that - Myth stores the input stream in it's 
native format. The capture card **may** do that, but that is not 
actually part of Myth. It may also do conversion as a post-storage 
operation, but that's not what teh patent describes.

>  >
>>>  providing a Media Switch, wherein said Media Switch parses said MPEG
>>>  stream, said MPEG stream is separated into its video and audio components;
>>
>  > Myth doesn't do that.
>
>I would bet MythTV does that internally.

No, it stores the native stream. It may be separated at the point of 
playback, or during post-storage processing, but it doesn't do it as 
part of the input process as described in the patent.



Mark Knecht wrote:

>What Simon may miss at this point is that it hardly matters anymore
>(for Myth anyway) whether the Tivo patent is a valid idea. Once it's
>patented it is patented and until someone can show the examiners that
>it shouldn't have been it stays that way. That will typically involve
>LOTS of lawyers. The defending company has a business that's making
>money and wants to put up ever defense to keep it to themselves. The
>arguing company wants in. Often this gets worked out outside of the
>patent office in some sort of licensing agreement. It's not the sort
>of thing that includes groups of interested bystanders.

I haven't missed that point. I've heard that it can cost $250,000 to 
get a patent re-examined which is not back of the sofa cash :-O

>Practically speaking even if Myth did violate Tivo patents (I'm
>not saying it does. I've not read the patent and don't have standing
>anyway...) the chances of Tivo going after a worldwide Open Source
>development group is very slim in my opinion. Myth's chances of
>survival are high in my opinion because of the way the source is
>licensed. However there are cases of individual developers backing
>down and changing the licensing on Open Source projects where patents
>existed much like the Tivo patent.

I'd agree there. Myth wouldn't be a productive target because there's 
no money behind it and no "sales" - that's primarily what it's about. 
Now if Myth managed to go mainstream and lots of people started using 
it (thus taking business from the patent holder or it's licencees), 
then there may be an interest in preventing it's use - but I think 
that's not a situation likely to arise anytime soon.

Worst case would probably be that US based developers dropped out and 
left the project to non-US developers for who US patents are 
irrelevant. No-one could stop this as I assume most if not all of the 
project is under GPL.

But since it's probably difficult to create anything non-trivial that 
doesn't infringe on someone's patent, then Myth isn't really any 
different to any other project.

-- 
Simon Hobson

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