Rights Management in Digital Media Content: A Case for FCC Intervention in the Standardization Process

INTRODUCTION................................................................................... 311 I. BACKGROUND: THE INDUSTRY’S NEED FOR A DRM STANDARD................................................................................... 313 A. Profits and Protection of Media Content ............................ 313 B. Copyright.............................................................................. 314 1. Copyright Law in the Analog World ........................... 316 2. The Betamax Case ........................................................ 318 C. The Digital Revolution and its Effect on Media ................. 319 1. Consequences for the Market for Media ...................... 320 D. Digital Piracy........................................................................ 320 E. Legal Reactions to the Digital Revolution ........................... 322 F. Technological Reactions to the Digital Revolution ............. 323 1. The Need for DRM Compliant Hardware .................. 324 II. THE MECHANICS OF STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT: CASE STUDIES ....................................................................................... 326 A. Ethernet................................................................................ 327 1. A General Note on Open, Non-Proprietary Collaboration................................................................ 327 2. The Development of Ethernet ..................................... 328