Battling the broadcast flag
In order to highlight the inherent problems with digital broadcast flags, The Electronic Frontier Foundation is providing instructions on how to build your own digitial video recorder that can operate with broadcast flags.

I have been opposed to the idea of broadcast flags since I first heard about them years ago. However, they always seemed like something that we'd have to worry about in the future. Unfortunately, it looks like that time has arrived.

Just recently, Insight (the local cable provider here in Louisville) placed a "copy never" broadcast flag on all of their digital content. That means that Insight customers who have a cable box with a Firewire output and purchased a DVHS recorder are no longer allowed to record digital content on it.

I am still a firm supporter of making the content owners bear the burden of protecting their products, not consumers and hardware vendors. The way the broadcast flags work, though, the content providers are basically able to defeat features of the hardware vendors' products with the broadcast flag.

For example, let's say you buy a new HD TiVo next year so that you can record some of the shows on Discovery HD. Well, if Discovery HD decides that they don't want you to record those shows, they can add a "copy never" broadcast flag. Now, the recording capabilities of your HD TiVo have been defeated by Discovery HD.

IMO, content providers need to come up with a system that protects their content without limiting the fair-use rights of consumers and without requiring manufacturers to incur unnecessary costs. Lobbying for legislation that stifles innovation and throws out fair use is not the way to do that.

For more information on the topic of broadcast flags, check out the EFF's Television Digital Liberation Front page. They even provide a list of HD tuner card manufacturers for those that want to build an HD PVR now.