More RIAA shadyness??

DOR

https://secure.eff.org/site/Advocacy?JServSessionIdr011=cwgl9adxn1.app13b&cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=157Don't Touch That Dial, RIAA!The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has seen the future of radio. And it would prefer to live in the past.Digital broadcast radio is a standard for transmitting digital stations on existing analog radio bands. Known somewhat misleadingly as "HD radio" (the audio quality is about the same as analog FM), its adoption is giving tech companies a chance to experiment and innovate in the world of consumer radio.TiVo-like functionality could be built into your digital receiver, letting you automatically build playlists and skip across channels based on your personal tastes. Computer-operated radio cards could be enhanced with new features using the standard's metadata. Tomorrow's tinkerers could give us new ways to enjoy radio, just as the engineers who brought us VCRs helped transform the way we watch TV.As Mitch Bainwol, chairman of RIAA says, radio has a chance to become active, not passive, entertainment.But when he and the RIAA say that, they don't say it like it's a good thing.Last week, with a coalition of copyright holders, the RIAA sent messages to members of Congress requesting that the FCC be given new powers to hobble digital radios so they perform worse than the analog radios of yesteryear.According to the RIAA, you should be able to record off the radio, but only subject to their "usage rules":recordings must be for no less than 30 minutes;recordings cannot be divided into individual songs, nor will you be allowed to jump between songs;recordings must be encrypted and locked to the individual recording device (no transfers to your iPod!);recordings can only be triggered by a human pressing a "record" button or by pre-programmed date-and-time (like your old VCR!), which means no smart metadata driven features like TiVo's "Wishlist."In other words, the RIAA wants to micromanage how you record off the radio! The most amazing thing about this? There is nothing illegal about recording from digital radio. Congress specifically gave radio fans the right to record off the radio (including digital radio) in the 1992 Audio Home Recording Act (AHRA). That law also gave innovators the right to build digital radio recorders (including smart digital radio recorders) without fear of copyright liability. There is nothing in that law that says the recorders have to be made artificially stupid by FCC regulation.Don't let Congress turn back the dial on digital radio. Write now, and let your representative know that the RIAA is out of line.

asparagus

that's whack. and goes all the way back to the Sony BetaMax lawsuit. and then to the lawsuits against recordable cassette players. - "bootlegging" radio seems like the most harmless of all. what's the point?

The RIAA wants listener's to buy-in to new "digital radio" and all of its benefits, yet restrict them from some of its latent potential, like being able to record/manage your own programming. They want to make this as un-iPod, and un-portable as possible.

Bsides

what the hell is digital radio and why are they concerned about this when everyone else is downloading everything for free!

asparagus

they're fighting a losing battle

alieNDN

podcasts are the new pirate radio...and all of us can do it and upload it to some yousendit kind of site...technology is great sometimes

mylatency

they already lost the battle

luck

I'm not surprised. The RIAA and the music industry have been partners in a disturbing history; the perversion of the essence of copyright laws in order to make as much money as possible. What's worse are their everpresent pleas that their hard work is put forth in the name of "the hardworking artists." Pure bullshit.

Either way, it's highly doubtful this backwards ploy will work. Imagine CBS or an advertising agency saying that they don't want you to TiVO (or TiVO over) their programming. The milk is spilt, already. Consumers are buying up TV show season DVDs like mad, despite their increased ability to record the shows for free.