Homegrown Satellite Radio Software Draws XM Fire

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Tim Finin <finin () cs umbc edu>
Date: August 29, 2004 9:33:24 PM EDT
To: Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
Subject: Homegrown Satellite Radio Software Draws XM Fire

Homegrown Satellite Radio Software Draws XM Fire
Sat Aug 28, By Kenneth Li
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=738&e=1&u=/nm/ 
20040828/tc_nm/radio_dc

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Catching Blondie's reunion tour
broadcast at 4 a.m. wasn't an option for XM satellite radio
subscriber and single father Scott MacLean.

"I was missing concerts that were being broadcasted when I
was asleep or out," he said.

So the 35-year-old computer programmer from Ottawa, Ontario,
wrote a piece of software that let him record the show
directly onto his PC hard drive while he snoozed.

The software, TimeTrax, also neatly arranged the individual
songs from the concert, complete with artist name and song
title information, into MP3 files.

Then MacLean started selling the software, putting him in
the thick of a potential legal battle pitting technically
savvy fans against a company protecting its alliance -- and
licensing agreements -- with the music industry.

MacLean says he is simply seeking to make XM Radio -- the
largest U.S. satellite radio service with over 2.1 million
members paying $10 a month for about 120 channels -- a
little more user-friendly.
...
A spokesman for the Recording Industry Association of
America (news - web sites) said his organization had not
reviewed the software, but said that in principle it was
disturbed by the idea. "We remain concerned about any
devices or software that permit listeners to transform a
broadcast into a music library," RIAA (news - web sites)
spokesman Jonathan Lamy said.

The RIAA and XM are both busy figuring out if any copyright
laws and user agreements have been broken.
...
XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq:XMSR - news) said
it was concerned about the software, based on a description
of its features.

"That's a product that's not authorized by XM," Chance
Patterson, vice president of corporate affairs, told Reuters
last week.

"That program is something we don't condone ... It's our
expectation they will be shut down," he added. "We're also
researching any potential legal violations."
...
In a letter seen by Reuters, XM's lawyers told MacLean to
discontinue his sales and provide the company with a list of
purchasers. He said he had no intention of complying and added that he
had no such list.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=738&e=1&u=/nm/ 
20040828/tc_nm/radio_dc

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