IP Democracy: NBC's Zucker Wants Everybody to Police Content

Anne Broache has this item today that discusses NBC-U CEO Jeff Zucker's position on content piracy, which is nothing new. But, speaking at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Zucker called on everybody, at every level of government to stop piracy.

Not only that, but he also wants "Internet service providers, university network operators, user-generated content sites, search engines, auction Web sites and even consumer electronics and home networking device manufacturers to install filtering technologies designed to detect and block unauthorized copyright content." Moreover, credit card companies should just simply shut off anybody suspected of transmitting unauthorized content.

In other words, Zucker wants everybody and his brother to pitch in and help NBC-U police content. A kind of greedy request that foists NBC-U's job onto the whole world.

Worse, he likens NBC-U's plan to the cable industry's efforts to snuff out piracy by encrypting video feeds. But unlike what Zucker is talking about, cable's encryption efforts don't force anybody to do anything. In fact, the cable industry has fought long and hard to keep its encryption technology out of the hands of TV set makers and certain set-top box makers (and probably PC manufacturers, although I'm not that sure of the history on this.)

Cable operators aren't forcing anybody else to "filter" content or shut down service or jump when a user or viewer is suspected of watching something they don't have a right to watch. Cable handles it all without imposing its economic dictates on every other industry involved in the TV business.

Why can't NBC-U do that?

Posted by Cynthia Brumfield on October 3, 2007 4:32 PM to IP Democracy