Washington, D.C. Tuesday, June 11, 2002.During a Congressional roundtable on digital TV chaired by House Commerce Committee Chairman Billy Tauzin, representatives of the content, information technologies and consumer electronics industries who participated in the Broadcast Protection Discussion Group (BPDG) reported on their efforts to protect digital broadcast programming from unauthorized redistribution.

In their written report released last week, the co-chairmen of the BPDG highlighted the near unanimous agreement on the broadcast flag descriptor and the substantial agreement that was reached on many other issues relating to compliance and robustness.

"Make no mistake. The final report of the BPDG demonstrates that there is substantial agreement between the consumer electronics, information technology and content communities," said Jack Valenti, President and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America. "The news delivered to Chairman Tauzin today confirms that it is possible for a disparate group of people to come together in a good faith discussion to produce positive results for all. Implementation of this broadcast flag will permit digital TV stations to obtain high value content and assure consumers a continued source of attractive, free, over-the-air programming without limiting the consumer's ability to make home copies."

Rep. Tauzin concluded the roundtable meeting today by calling on the parties to resolve all remaining issues by July 15. "I applaud Chairman Tauzin, Chairman Hollings in the Senate and all members of Congress who have weighed in with their support of copyright and creativity for their determined efforts to push the various interest groups to find solutions to these complex problems that must be dealt with before consumers can enjoy the full benefits of digital technology," said Valenti.

While there were dissenting views regarding some compliance and robustness recommendations outlined in the BPDG report, of some 70 organizations that participated in the BPDG, only 14 submitted dissenting comments on one or more issues. Of these 14 dissenters, six were self-styled "consumer" groups that have demonstrated opposition in principle to any restraints on the reproduction and redistribution of content.

The BPDG was created in response to Congressional concerns that broadcasters be able to protect their programming from wholesale redistribution after it is broadcast. Without this protection, free, off-air broadcasters may not be able to obtain high-value programs, leaving consumers with subscription services as their only source of high-value programming. The BPDG was designed to provide an open forum to reach multi-industry consensus on technological means to prevent the unauthorized redistribution of digital broadcast programming beyond the home network.