Kellner hates TiVo
Jamie “Hello, I’m a scum-sucking nematode” Kellner, chairman and CEO of Turner Broadcasting, has voiced his opinions regarding TiVo and other modern recorders. In his view, skipping television commercials is theft, the violation of an implicit contract between the viewer and the broadcaster. This is hogwash. When I sign my name to the dotted line of a cable television agreement in the United States, I am agreeing to pay a certain amount of money per month to receive a particular spectrum of video streams. I am not in the business of subsidizing content providers.
It is impossible to feel sympathy for these gigantic broadcasters. They are not broadcasting out of charity and benevolence, they are in it to make money. The broadcasters have chosen one revenue model among many: they sell portions of airtime to third parties. If a subset of consumers fail to watch the advertising, then the value of these ad slots will fall. The broadcasters may complain that the resultant loss of revenue will put them out of business, but it is not my concern whether TBS continues to air. If it goes off the air, we will have to do without, but that is the market’s prerogative.
There are other revenue models for broadcasters. The broadcaster could charge the consumer for receiving the content (HBO). It could rely on voluntary and/or governmental support (PBS). Or the whole system could be overhauled, such that one must license a television and pay annually to renew it (BBC).
I am aware of the risks. If a broadcaster runs out of money they will go off the air. LIkewise, if people stop buying M&Ms, the producers will stop making them. This is capitalism. Someone should let Kellner know.
Ernest Miller at LawMeme has issued a tongue-in-cheek list of other new copyright violations, including getting to the movie theatre late and missing the previews, inviting friends over to watch pay-per-view, and changing radio stations in the car when a commercial comes on (”The RIAA has not yet taken a position on whether it is permissible to switch channels when the listener doesn’t like the song,” Miller notes.) The full list can be found here.
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