Waving the Broadcast Flag

In July 2005, broadcasters will begin to use the broadcast flag, a set of recording rules embedded in digital television programming. All products made after then will have to recognize and respond to the flag. Although some of the products you buy now may work with the flag, devices purchased last year probably won't. As a result, a lot of good equipment could become obsolete.

Depending on a content creator's wishes, you may be able to record a program (say, to a digital video recorder); record it and then make one copy (say, to a DVD); or copy it all you want (local-access channel content, perhaps). Or you may not be able to record it at all (the likely case for things like pay-for-view). The flag can be applied to any digital content, HD or not.

But, in the short term, the bigger issue will be how devices made before July 2005 will work with devices made after. Say you record an episode of The West Wing to a flag-enabled HD-DVR. If you try to save it to DVD using a burner that doesn't support the flag, you'll get garbage. You may be able to get around this using an analog connection (the so-called analog hole), but you won't get the same quality.

You will be able to record a flagged episode with a digital device that does not recognize the flag. And if you could export the show to a flagged device, again, no problem. But, as I've noted, most unflagged devices lack the ports necessary to make external copies.

Digital World Contributing Editor Michael Desmond is based in Colchester, Vermont.