[mythtv-users] Switching away from comcast to online streams

[Stephen P. Villano]

On 1/26/14, 11:37 AM, jedi wrote:
> On Sun, Jan 26, 2014 at 11:21:37AM -0500, Eric Sharkey wrote:
>> On Sun, Jan 26, 2014 at 11:16 AM, Stephen P. Villano
>> <stephen.p.villano at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> Strange, what cable provider is not permitting someone to use their own
>>> customer provided devices?
>>> This list is full of users who do use their customer provided devices on
>>> various cable networks (though, some providers are incorrectly flagging
>>> channels).
>> In nearly all cases, set top boxes and cable cards remain property of
>> the cable company.  If you want to buy a cable card and own it
>> outright without a monthly fee, you can't.  If you want a generic STB
>> and find one one ebay or from some other source, they generally won't
>> let you hook it up.
>     The main problem is that cable operators seek to make 3rd party devices
> useless. The whole encryption cartel thing has become a huge mess. The only
> platform that is fully supported is Windows and even then I think the only
> fully supported application is Microsoft's own. The entire regime is hostile
> to anything else. It's even somewhat hostile to Tivo.
>
>     Workaround can be done but they are more complex and more costly. The
> simple and direct approach is quite effectively sabotaged.
> _______________________________________________
>
Windows is the fully supported, followed by Tivo. Both paid for the
licensing and met with the requirements of protecting the crypto.
That isn't sabotage, it's a basic licensing scheme that is somewhat
abusive in nature.
Direct sabotage is something that is actionable by the FCC. That has
been discussed in the SiliconDust forums, with guidance on how to
register an FCC complaint when a cable company won't properly provision
the cablecard.

Comcast in my area still properly tags the channels and provisions the
cablecards. FIOS does as well, though their staff doesn't have a clue in
getting the cablecards properly activated.

Still, we do need to generate political support for protecting consumer
choice, while still protecting intellectual property. Law tends to lag
behind technological development. This is true both because of our rapid
development of new technologies and because politicians are, as a rule,
clueless about technology in general, especially new technologies.
Indeed, what politicians know best is how to get elected and reelected.