So long Ivi TV

[TKMetal]

Seattle startup ivi TV sought to build a business by transmitting the most popular network TV shows over the internet, but today that idea looks like a dead end, at least for now. ivi TV CEO Todd Weaver has vowed to fight on and seek an appeal, but in the meantime, ivi TV will have to shut down most of its broadcasts, following an order issued today by a New York federal judge.

Judge Naomi Buchwald’s order has a tone of astonishment that ivi TV was even bold enough to set up such a system. “To place defendants’ argument in real-world context, they assert that for the payment of approximately $100 a year to the Copyright Office (the payment for a Section 111 compulsory license) and without compliance with the strictures of the Communications Act or plaintiffs’ Consent, that they are entitled to use and profit from the plaintiffs’ copyrighted works.”

ivi TV argued that it should have been classified as a cable system under U.S. law, and a few weeks ago several public-interest groups weighed in to support the Seattle company. But Buchwald was nowhere near accepting that argument. ivi TV isn’t a cable system, she wrote, and “absent defendants’ skewed interpretation of the statutory text and administrative record, there is absolutely no basis for holding otherwise.”

The court battles began quickly after ivi TV’s launch last year, but this decision was delayed because of a skirmish over venue; the parties disagreed whether the case should be heard in Seattle or New York.

Lawyers representing the TV networks weren’t authorized to comment on their win, but forwarded my inquiry to their clients. ivi TV CEO Weaver struck a combative pose in his statement on the verdict, saying that people want more than the “one-size-fits-all television offerings” currently available: “This fight is for the people and their right to choice and control over their own entertainment—and it will continue. The oppressive big media networks must open their doors to innovators or they will inevitably fall.”

http://m.paidcontent.org/article/419...-shouldnt-have

http://www.scribd.com/doc/49358625/i...ing-02-22-2011

[Pavan]

Terrible news. http://blog.sitcomsonline.com/2011/0...ith-cosby.html

[Sal]

This looked like a great video site to look at and explore until I saw that, like Hulu, it was "US only", which, to me, is a bigger crime than what they were charged with. So I'm actually glad this happened. Next time, they should learn and know better. Remember, this is supposed to be the WORLD Wide Web!