Congressmen Think FCC’s Set-Top Box Plan Is Just Like “Popcorn Time”
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and ranking Democrat John Conyers (D-Mich.) described their concerns in a letter to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler Thursday, as noted by Politico. The letter echoes arguments made by cable lobbyists and some groups representing copyright holders.
“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,” Goodlatte and Conyers wrote.
The Goodlatte/Conyers letter doesn’t provide any evidence that the FCC plan would enable piracy. Instead, they point to “apps such as Popcorn Time that focus on providing access to piratical content [and] have tried to match the format and ease of use of legitimate apps to mask the theft of copyrighted content.” New set-top boxes “could incorporate apps such as Popcorn Time or its functionality or otherwise lead to the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted works,” they wrote.
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