On Thursday, CableLabs said it had given its approval to the DTCP-IP technology for protection of cable content using Internet Protocol for unidirectional and bidirectional digital cable offerings.
CableLabs made the announcement in conjunction with Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, The Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros and the Digital Transmission Licensing Administration (DTLA).
Using DTCP (Digital Transmission Copy Protection)-protected secure links among consumer electronics devices, cable subscribers will be able to access digital cable programming, including high-definition and VOD cable content, on consumer electronics devices and personal computers on their digital home networks.
The approval permits CableLabs licensees under DFAST, CHILA, and DCAS to protect pay-per-view and video-on-demand transmissions against unauthorized copying and unauthorized Internet retransmission, while assuring consumers’ ability to record broadcast and subscription programming, in digital formats, for personal use.
“The agreement we reached today addresses the highly complex concerns raised by the affected parties—cable, content, and consumer electronics—and brings benefits to consumers,” said Dr. Richard R. Green, President and CEO of CableLabs, in a statement.
“Working together we agreed on solutions that meet our respective business needs, and serve the interests of consumers and content providers.”
As part of the agreement, DTLA, which was formed in 1998 by Hitachi, Intel, Panasonic, Sony and Toshiba, withdrew a related petition at the FCC on Wednesday and both entities filed a notice for the new agreement with the FCC the same day. CableLabs previously had approved DTCP for protection of content over the IEEE 1394 interface.
“Approval of DTCP-IP is an important accomplishment, and we applaud the hard work of our colleagues in the motion picture and cable industry for making this possible,” said Michael Ayers, President of DTLA, in a statement. “DTCP-IP for home digital cable products opens the door for increased flexible use of protected digital cable content, providing opportunities for cable operators, content owners, device manufacturers and, most importantly, consumers. This represents a real advancement for the protected home entertainment network.”
DTLA and CableLabs also agreed to work on several forward-looking provisions to help implement the new developments and facilitate new businesses models. One of those provisions included “copy never” content, which DTLA will make available to cable operators with the same level of protection that it adopts for Blu-Ray and HD DVDs.
