stb – Techdirt (original) (raw)

MPAA Applauds Derailment of FCC Cable Box Competition Plan Because, Uh, Jobs!

from the overlords-of-nonsense dept

Last week we noted how the FCC had to scrap its plan to bring competition to the cable box after an unprecedented PR and disinformation campaign by the cable and entertainment industries. In short, using consultants, think tanks, payrolled politicians, a soundwall of misleading editorials and even the US Copyright Office, the cable industry was able to convince many in the press, public and even at the FCC that the plan would have ripped the planet off its very orbital access, violated copyright, eroded consumer privacy, and even harmed diversity programming.

In reality, the cable sector’s opposition was about two things: $21 billion in captive box rental revenues, and a fear of a loss of control. Being an expert in the latter, the MPAA of course was quick to issue a statement applauding the “delay” in the FCC’s proceeding:

“The MPAA is pleased that the FCC is taking more time, and we hope they use it to ensure any set-top box proposal remains consistent with copyright policy and avoids harming creators,? said MPAA Chairman and CEO Senator Chris Dodd, who emphasized that his organization, along with ?virtually the entire creative community? is ?standing up for copyright and the rights of creators.”

Except again, the cable box plan has nothing to do with copyright. The rules would have simply required cable companies pass on their existing programming (and all DRM) to third party hardware vendors, resulting in more competition in cable boxes and ultimately more open and cheaper boxes. Because that might just give consumers a little more control, the MPAA joined the hissy fit parade of inaccurate implausibilities. And to justify trying to keep the cable box locked down and shitty, the best the MPAA can apparently do is reiterate some nonsensical talking points about jobs:

“We support the FCC?s goal of promoting set-top box competition, but we continue to urge the Commission to forge a path that does not undermine the creative economy,? Dodd continued. ?Copyright employs more than 5.5 million U.S. workers and generates over $1 trillion in economic value ? incentivizing innovation and investment in creative works enjoyed by millions around the world.”

Except the FCC’s proposal wouldn’t hurt jobs in the slightest. Under the FCC’s plan, customers still would pay for cable, they’d just have more flexibility in how that programming is consumed. And if anything, you’d see more jobs as the cable hardware itself was opened to multiple hardware competitors and streaming vendors looking to make headway in the space. But just like their previous whining session on this subject, the MPAA can’t just admit it’s terrified of evolution and consumer empowerment, so it apparently has to conflate “copyright” with a loss of control.

Meanwhile, while many media outlets continue to insist this plan is simply on hold, there’s really only two likely outcomes moving forward thanks to cable lobbyists, the US Copyright Office, and folks like the MPAA: either the plan gets scrapped entirely, or the end result winds up being so watered down as to be utterly useless.

Filed Under: competition, copyright, fcc, set top boxes, stb
Companies: mpaa

Comcast, Wireless Industry Using 'Diversity' Groups To Oppose Net Neutrality, Fight Cable Set Top Box Reform

from the sockpuppetry dept

Thu, May 12th 2016 06:33am - Karl Bode

We’ve noted several times how one of the sleaziest lobbying tactics in telecom is the co-opting of minority or “diversity” groups to support policies that actually hurt these groups’ constituents. Such theater benefits large telecom companies by presenting the illusion of broad support for what usually are extremely anti-consumer (or anti-small business and startup) policies. And it’s not just minority groups being used in such fashion; telecom lobbyists have long used “retired seniors,” hearing impaired groups and cattle rancher associations to push bad policy.

This kind of disinformation is pervasive, incredibly destructive, and common practice in everything from the construction industry to patent reform.

But telecom lobbyists have long been masters at this particular game. It works something like this: an ISP like Comcast (or some other telecom-affiliated lobbying group) will help fund a group’s new event center. In exchange, these groups parrot any policy Comcast puts forth, be it opposition to net neutrality or support for the latest merger. Quid pro quo obligations are never put in writing, letting these groups claim their positions only coincidentally mirror that of their donors.

One of the key groups being used in this fashion in telecom is the “Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council,” or MMTC. A few years ago the Center for Public Integrity called out the group as being a cornerstone of cable industry “astroturf” (phony grass roots). Organization documents show the group takes money from Time Warner Cable, Comcast, and Verizon, and Comcast political operative Joe Waz just so happens to be on the group’s board of directors (surely a coincidence). The group came under fire in 2014 for forcing one website to pull critical coverage of the group’s extremely dubious behavior.

And as the FCC pushes to open the set top box market to competition, the MMTC has once again surfaced to happily mirror the cable industry’s absurd claims that more set top box competition will somehow mean less diversity in programming. MMTC, alongside similar telecom-affiliated groups, recently fired off a letter (pdf) to the FCC urging the agency to pause its set top efforts to first further study diversity. Another widely circulated announcement (pdf) parrots cable industry claims that additional set top box competition will somehow demolish the pay TV sector:

“However, the approach the Commission has chosen to ensure consumer choice in their navigation devices causes collateral damage to the entire TV network ecosystem, with the greatest harm falling upon diverse content creators on multichannel video programming distributor platforms (MVPDs, such as cable and satellite). In essence, the NPRM requires MVPDs to hand over TV Network content to online video distributors (OVDs) and third-party device manufacturers who would then be able to do what they want with the content, without negotiation, and without compensation to the creators or programmers.”

For one thing, increased set top box competition benefits everybody by bringing cheaper, better hardware to market, and putting an end to the $21 billion in captive set top rental fees the cable industry enjoys annually — the only thing really driving cable’s opposition. But increased set top box competition also puts an end to the cable walled garden, exposing all consumers to a broader and more diverse array of online streaming content than ever before. As such the argument that the FCC’s effort will somehow harm diversity simply holds absolutely no water, yet it’s useful in bogging the regulator down in diversity concerns that are driven by incumbent money, not an actual interest in bridging the digital divide.

Using bogus diversity concerns to hamstring pro-consumer regulatory reform has been such a successful lobbying tactic for Comcast, the company changed the title of top lobbyist David Cohen to “chief diversity officer.” That’s not to say that nothing Comcast or Cohen does ever benefits diversity, but it’s hard to suggest you’re helping minorities when you’ve been actively pitting minority and diversity groups against the interest of their own constituents on an industrial scale for the better part of the last decade.

The FCC’s quest to “unlock the cable box” is only one such area where these groups have been employed to great effect. The MMTC has also been at the heart of cable, phone and wireless industry efforts to derail net neutrality rules. In fact the MMTC surfaced again last week when it released a “study” claiming that zero rating of content (letting select content bypass user caps) is an incredible boon to consumers and minorities everywhere (pdf):

“Zero-rating is also poised to play a key role in helping to close the digital divide by addressing cost concerns and strengthening the value proposition offered to skeptical non-users, two key considerations for the millions of Americans who remain offline. The actual contours of the free data plans are fluid, responsive to consumer demand, optional, and, unlike many other online offerings, they do not rely on targeted ads to pay for the data. Accordingly, policymakers should not categorically ignore the very real benefits of free data and should instead allow this kind of innovation and experimentation to continue without unnecessary interference.

But zero rating has the potential to do the exact opposite, something the MMTC can’t be bothered to mention. The big criticism of zero rating has been that if you give some content, companies or services cap-exempt status, you’re immediately putting other companies and organizations at a disadvantage. That’s particularly problematic for startups, educational institutions, or other non-profits (like MMTC itself) that may not even be aware their services are being discriminated against.

All told, the MMTC opposes net neutrality, opposes set top box competition, and even supported AT&T’s failed acquisition of T-Mobile, which would have lessened competition in the wireless space, driving up costs for everyone. Yet when pressed, the group continues to claim these kinds of anti-consumer positions are entirely coincidental, and in no way tied to contributions from major telecom incumbents. With friends like these…

One reason for the continued success of this kind of pay-to-play policy regurgitation is that neither regulators nor the press can be bothered to call this behavior what it is: marketing and lobbying. While DC insiders certainly are aware of what the groups are doing, they very rarely can be bothered to point out the puppetry (though reports suggest Comcast’s use of such tactics played some role in scuttling its last merger attempt). In the last fifteen years FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn is one of the only regulators to even comment on the MMTC not actually reflecting its constituents’ best self interests, though even then her comments were more passing observation than serious criticism.

But the press continues to take the lion’s share of the blame when it comes to perpetuating such astroturf efforts. When the press talks about groups like the MMTC, you’d be hard pressed to notice any mention about the organization’s documented ties to telecom industry coffers, its repeated history of opposing pro-consumer policies, or the group’s relationships to what has become a very deep web of underhanded efforts to negatively influence Internet discourse. In fact of the half dozen news outlets commenting on the MMTC’s zero rating study, the very worst the group is called is a “leading civil rights non-profit.” Outlets are also all too happy to publish editorials from “diversity advocates” without disclosing what should be obvious ties to telecom cash.

Ultimately it’s up to these groups’ constituents to refuse to fund organizations actively working against their best self interests, and for similar groups with integrity to continue to inform the public about this kind of behavior. In the interim it might be nice if the media could stop playing obedient lapdog to a deep and destructive network of what can only be called pay-to-play propaganda.

Filed Under: competition, diversity, fcc, net neutrality, set top boxes, stb
Companies: at&t, comcast, mmtc, verizon

Congress Has No Idea How The FCC's Cable Box Reform Plan Works, Conyers, Goodlatte Compare Effort To 'Popcorn Time'

from the not-very-good-at-my-job dept

Wed, May 4th 2016 06:23am - Karl Bode

As we’ve been discussing, the FCC is cooking up a plan to bring much-needed competition to the cable set top box market. As a fact sheet being circulated by the agency (pdf) notes, the FCC hopes to force cable operators to offer their existing cable lineups to third party hardware — without the need of a pesky CableCARD. This would obviously disrupt the $21 billion in annual, captive set top rental fees enjoyed by the industry, and the competitive set top box market that emerges would likely drive more users than ever to alternative streaming options.

As such, the cable industry has been having a monumental hissy fit. This has ranged from threatening lawsuits to publishing an absolute ocean of misleading editorials in news outets nationwide, claiming the FCC’s plan would destroy consumer privacy, increase piracy, hurt programming diversity, and make little children cry.

Not too surprisingly, the cable and entertainment industry has now gotten some members of Congress to contribute to the hysteria. Note that the FCC’s proposal makes it abundantly clear that under the proposal, a cable provider can “determine the content protection systems it deems sufficient to prevent theft and misuse, and will not impede the introduction of new content protection systems.” Yet in a letter sent to the FCC this week, Representatives Bob Goodlatte and John Conyers say creators have “shared concerns” that the FCC’s plan will lead us down the road to rampant piracy. You know, like Popcorn Time:

“As Members of the House Judiciary Committee, which oversees our nation’s copyright laws, we recognize the harm the American economy caused by the theft of copyrighted works. Creators have shared concerns that under the FCC’s proposed rule, future set-top boxes or their replacements could purposely be designed to distribute pirated content obtained from sources that primarily offer stolen content. For example. apps such as Popcorn Time that focus on providing access to piratical content have tried to match the form and ease of use of legitimate apps to mark the theft of copyrighted content. Creators are legitimately worried about the prospect that future set top boxes, or their functional equivalents, could incorporate apps such as Popcorn Time or its functionality, or otherwise lead to the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted works.”

From the letter it’s pretty clear the Representatives — and the “creators” expressing their worry — don’t actually understand what the FCC is trying to do. Conyers and Goodlatte throw Popcorn Time into the mix seemingly at random, given the FCC’s proposal has absolutely nothing to do with the app.

For better or worse, under the FCC’s proposal nothing about copy protection will actually change. Users will still pay the cable industry for service, those users will just be able to access that same programming on hardware from the likes of TiVO, Google, Amazon, whose hardware will already be in most consumer homes. And while these devices are more open than cable boxes, it’s bizarre to suggest this shift results in some kind of piracy free for all. In fact, having more open set top boxes not ensconced by the cable industry’s walled garden approach will present consumers with access to more legitimate streaming content sources than ever before. That’s what the cable industry is actually worried about.

The piracy bogeyman was also recently trotted out in an editorial by “The Walking Dead” Producer Gale Anne Hurd, who tried to argue that making the set top box market more open and competitive would only drive users to pirated content because hey — a more open device might actually include a browser and access to the actual Internet. That’s again missing the forest for the trees on an absolutely mammoth scale, ignoring that open platforms and an exponential explosion in access to streaming services means more ways to access her content legitimately than ever before.

Again, it’s not clear if the people yelling about piracy just don’t understand how this all works and are just being “informed” by the wrong people, or if they’re intentionally aiding the cable industry and mis-characterizing what the FCC is planning (probably a combination of both). But make no mistake: the TV industry’s opposition to set top box reform has nothing to do with being worried about piracy, diversity, security, or the welfare of puppies — and everything to do with protecting a stagnant industry from market evolution and lost revenue.

Filed Under: bob goodlatte, competition, copyright, fcc, innovation, john conyers, open, piracy, set top boxes, stb