Oz TV piracy worries U.S.
Feevee execs want criminal sanctions to deter hackers
The original text of the FTA included this measure, but it was left out of the legislation approved by the Aussie Parliament.
The Australian Subscription Television and Radio Assn. has voiced its concerns to the government and secured the support of U.S. Ambassador Tom Schieffer.
Since introducing digital services in March, payboxes Foxtel and Austar have spent an estimated $10.5 million installing smart cards in subscribers' set-top boxes to encrypt their signals.
But pay TV execs said criminal sanctions are needed to deter hackers from breaching the system. It is an offense to sell piracy devices, but using them is not a crime.
The Oz government acknowledged this week it was unlikely to exchange letters with the U.S., certifying it has implemented the principles of the pact, by Sunday, 60 days before it's due to come into effect Jan. 1.
However, both sides can vary the timetable, so the deal could still come into force in January.
Australian Film Commission chief exec Kim Dalton told an FTA seminar in Melbourne on Thursday that the agency would continue to press the government to raise the 10% local drama spending quota for pay TV channels to 20%, the maximum allowable under the pact.
Only 5% of drama programming on pay TV is Australian, which AFC believes does not provide an adequate choice for consumers, Dalton said.
