Those Damn Consumer Rights

Filed in archive Companies , Consumer Rights , Government , People on May 18, 2007

Proving that DRM will never die and paying customers remain enemy number one, an HBO executive revealed that the cable programmer has been stymied by the nasty regulators at the FCC.

HBO Chief Technology Officer Bob Zitter, promoter of the euphemism Digital Consumer Enablement, said that HBO is not making available HD versions of its programming to its subscribers because it's not assured of total control over HD content. HBO already offers its shows in regular TV format through HBO On Demand.

HD cable set-top boxes already have HDMI or DVI digital copy protection through digital output. But they also have an analog output, just like non HD cable units. HBO sought to disable the analog output but that's illegal, according to the FCC, which ensures compatibility for cable subscribers with HD programming and older set-top boxes that don't have digital copy protection.