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March 27, 2002

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The Hollings Bill and the SSSCA

Last week's EFFector alert on the Senator Hollings' CBDTPA has some tasty bits on where the BPDG fits in to the universe of technology mandates.
The CBDTPA, Hollywood and Holling's bid to strangle the American technology industry, is just the latest salvo. Over the past year, the Copy Protection Technology Working Group has convened the Broadcast Protection Discussion Group, which has been laying down the "consensus" on new digital television devices for a captive audience of representatives from electronics, software and computer companies.

These profoundly undemocratic proceedings sacrifice consumer rights, free speech and innovation on the altar of Hollywood's hysterical technophobia.

The CBDTPA promises a world where useful features would be eliminated if the possibility for their misuse existed, such as:

* limits on "format-shifting," for example, the ability to create mix-CDs of music you've paid for;

* controls built into hard-drives that would allow files to be labelled as "unmovable," so they could not be backed up, or moved to another machine, nor could the drive be effectively optimized;

* restrictions on the manufacture and distribution of devices and programs that can play unrestricted formats, such as MP3 audio and DivX video files.

Senator Hollings, called "The Senator from Disney" for his close ties with Hollywood money, continues to push for technology mandates, federally imposed specifications for technologies that outlaw legitimate functionality in order to control illegitimate uses. It's the technological equivalent of requiring that crowbars be made of foam-rubber on the grounds that metal ones may be used in the commission of burglaries.

Posted by Cory Doctorow at 09:48 PM