i just read on the papers that recordtv and mediacorp are having a lawsuit because mediacorp feels that recordtv has infringed on their copyright. also, mediacorp is challenging recordtv's claim that they are stifling the progress of an innovation. everything else aside, whether it is "a new innovation" or not, they are all committing a fallacy. they are arguing about something that is irrelevant to the more important issue - copyright.

i'd like to make an audacious assumption that mediacorptv just likes the idea by recordtv and wants to get rid of them before setting up this very same service themselves. yes, monopoly has resulted in this form of greed and arrogance. but to protect myself from any lawsuit, i still have to say that this is not necessarily true because it is afterall my groundless assumption.

back to the more important case, i think it is silly or plain dumb to be suing recordtv over copyright infringement. the case is simple. according to the report, recordtv's service allows users to record any program for up to 15 days. isn't this form of recording similar to the use of vcr, vcd recorder, dvd recorder or wintv? the only difference is in the way recording is executed. besides, the recordings online will be made inaccessible after 15 days as compared to the more traditional media, which can be saved, kept or even distributed. not that i am interested in keeping mediacorp programs anyway. to be honest, i really loved mediacorp's programs in the past. but while time has improved, the standard of the programs have stood at a standstill. look at chestnuts' musical for 2009 and you will understand. yes, chestnuts made fun of their unchanging script ideas for the past n years. but i digress.

if recordtv can be sued over copyright infringement just because it allows users to record tv programs, then they probably should start suing panasonic, thomson, sony, akira, hitachi, pioneer... because they all produced recording machines. worse, theirs can only be erased at the owners' own will. 15 days? even 15 years isn't a problem.

i hope they can step aside from the silly argument on whether or not it is a new innovation and get back to the crux of the matter. and i sure hope mediacorp realises this is but one silly case to be fighting.

disclaimer: i am not a recordtv user and neither should the above content on the lawsuit be taken as truth. it is only a personal opinion.