PVRblog broke the news of content protection in Tivo rearing it’s head albeit supposedly it’s just an accident/glitch. The fact that the capability is built in and can be triggered “accidently” at the head end when certain shows should expire doesn’t bode well for TiVo, in my opinion.

See also:

“A bug in the latest version of TiVo’s operating system has some users concerned that the service’s content protection mechanisms–supposedly intended solely for pay-per-view and video-on-demand content–may someday be applied to broadcast television programming.”

TiVo won’t save certain shows or allow moving them
BoingBoing Tivo Alternatives
SlashDot: Tivo OS update adds content protection
PVRwire: DRM scare creeps into Tivo
TVHarmony: Tivo and the red flag
Gizmodo: Tivo OS 7.2 aka screw you luanched
Kottke: Tivo hates its customers

You probably already know how I feel about DRM in general, but to surmise: I can’t stand that a device I own and a service I pay for can be a moving target (in the wrong direction) with the possibilty of me having less PVR functionality now than when I purchased the device.

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