Court denies FCC anti-piracy ‘flag’ plans

Court denies FCC anti-piracy ‘flag’ plans

An American court has ruled that FCC does not have the authority to control the copying of digital TV with an anti-piracy technology. They said that Federal Communications Commission (FCC) was going beyond its authority in this matter by dictating how electronic devices work in the US. An earlier ruling made it mandatory for all digital TVs and other electronic devices to ship with a particular technology after July 1.

The technology called “broadcast flag” would have enabled the broadcasters decide what the end consumer can and cannot record. Broadcast flag attaches a code with the shows, which tells devices that receive digital signals the level of copy protection on that program. the appeals court panel stated: “We can find nothing in the statute, its legislative history, the applicable case law, or agency practice indicating that Congress meant to provide the sweeping authority the FCC now claims over receiver apparatus.”

FCC has been supported in this initiative by various broadcasters who claimed that the technology would have resulted in stopping of piracy of the shows aired on the television. However, the courts decided that the technology would have prevented the people make recordings of their favorite shows for later viewing limiting their capabilities to store content for educational or teaching purposes.

Their were also rumors that if the ruling was applied, FCC would have used this as an example of their authority to dictate more serious level of limitations set on other technological devices making it harder for consumer to enjoy the latest advancements offered to them by new generation gadgets. Critics call this judgment a victory for consumer rights.

Wendy Seltzer, lawyer for digital rights campaign group the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) spoke to the media about this ruling: “It says the FCC can’t regulate everything under the sun, and in particular, that Hollywood can’t use the agency to regulate how the public can watch and record television. Instead, it leaves our digital television choices with the market, where they belong. The court also recognized the library and educational uses that would be harmed by the flag’s restrictions.”