HHR New Media, Entertainment and Technology Group

As we recently reported here, a  new Internet-connected software application, called “ivi tv”, was just released that allows pc, mac and linux end users to stream live feeds from over-the-air television stations to their computers anywhere in the world. Unlike other online content distributors, however, the start-up recently confirmed that it has elected not to negotiate with the copyright holders for the license of its programming, and has instead elected to wager its future on a seemingly liberal interpretation of certain provisions of the Copyright Act (the “Act”), which permit qualifying “cable systems” to rebroadcast over-the-air television signals upon the payment of certain statutorily mandated revenues (see Section 111).

As we suspected, the response from the entertainment community has been swift, and the company has since received a barrage of cease and desist letters from television networks, movie studios, sports leagues, broadcasters, syndicators and others in the entertainment industry alleging that the operation of the service as currently conducted amounts to copyright infringement. In response, the company has now filed a complaint for declaratory judgment in Seattle district court alleging that by complying with the Act’s compulsory licensing scheme in Section 111 “it has not infringed any of the copyrights owned by the any of the Defendants.”

We will obviously keep an eye on future developments as this complaint now moves its way through the court system and the entertainment industry’s forthcoming response.

A new Internet-connected software application, called “ivi tv”  http://www.ivi.tv/, was released this week that allows pc, mac and linux end users to stream live feeds from over-the-air television stations to their computers anywhere in the world, including feeds from ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, PBS, Telemundo, Univision and others. The small Seattle-based start-up behind the service, Ivi, Inc., currently charges user $4.99 a month for access, with the option to add DVR functionality for an extra 99 cents, and plans to expand the service to mobile devices and other platforms in the coming months.

Unlike other online content distributors, the start-up has allegedly sidestepped negotiating with the copyright holders for the license of its programming, and has instead elected to wager its future on a seemingly liberal interpretation of certain provisions of the Copyright Act (the “Act”), which permit qualifying “cable systems” to rebroadcast over-the-air television signals upon the payment of certain statutorily mandated revenues. Specifically, the Act’s compulsory licensing scheme (see Section 111) allows cable systems to carry distant broadcast signals while compensating copyright owners for the public performance of their works, without the transaction costs associated with marketplace negotiations for the carriage of copyrighted programs, and instead requires that the cable system remit a fixed portion of their revenues for the retransmission of such programming to the copyright holders. Based on statements from ivi, Inc.’s management, the company has already taken steps to comply with the requirements under Act, and is apparently taking the position that its service does, in fact, qualify as a “cable system”. Continue Reading »

The next interactive gaming revolution will soon be ushered in by a wave of gesture detection control systems, where the player’s body controls the action.  Beginning this year, game developers and publishers will have the technology to develop a viable motion capture-based game, one with more potential applications than any gaming console or system released to date.  Using a TV-mounted motion detection camera and a handheld controller, the PlayStation Motion Controller (rumored to be named the “Arc”) will be capable of recognizing and tracking a user’s face and voice as well as body motion.  Similarly, Microsoft’s Project Natal system for the Xbox 360 will use a TV-mounted motion detection camera that will track the movement of every part of the body, and capture, for the first time, a three-dimensional representation of the player on the screen completely sans gaming controllers. Now, as consumers await the release of a slew of motion capture games scheduled for retail this holiday season, publishers and developers alike need to brace themselves for the myriad of potential legal issues concerning the ownership and licensing of the movements replicated and featured in those games. Continue Reading »