CHECK this OUT! And, if can "CONFIRM!" - eh!

[1 CRAZY CANUCK]

Yo! Freedom Supporters:
Check-out what I read surfing the sites, for legal issues. They may be not talkin' Canadian "issues"; but, it seems to "SING" an awesome tune for OUR FREEDOM![too! LOL!] - eh!



"EchoStar Ordered to Stop Serving Customers
WASHINGTON, Jun 12, 2003 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- A federal judge
in Miami has ordered the DishNetwork, owned by the EchoStar Communications Corp., to
stop delivering illegal out-of-market television signals.

The Hollywood Reporter says the permanent injunction against the nation's
second-largest satellite TV company came in a long-running dispute with
broadcasters. The judge ruled the EchoStar failed to present "any credible evidence"
that many of its subscribers are eligible to receive distant signals.

Under the nation's satellite TV laws, customers who cannot receive an over-the-air
broadcast signal are eligible to receive one that is imported via satellite.

The ruling left it unclear, however, exactly how many customers it will affect since
many may now legally receive local programming, not only through satellite services,
but with over-the-air antennas or by cable.

The ruling estimates as many as 900,000 customers may receive at least one illegal
relay signal. The company has 8.5 million subscribers."

:D

[cfisher]

I beleive this has to do with the Satellite Home Viewers Act which affects only small dish owners. I kept up with this when I had to get my waivers to watch out of markets stations (which I do not have to do anymore under the amended law! :) )

The judge in the case was Lenore Nesbitt in Florida (?!?!?!). It had nationwide ramifications and almost put Primetime 24 out of business.


http://www.kovr13.com/bio/satellite02.htm


Judge: Ergen Broke SHVA Promise
A federal judge had some tough words for senior officers of EchoStar Communications Corp. in a ruling that could bring more local broadcasters to satellite viewers who now get national network feeds.


Judge William P. Dimitrouleas of the U.S. Court for the Southern Florida District condemned the DBS operator's use of several tactics to illegally sign up viewers to the so-called distant signals of ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox when the viewers may have been able to receive those networks through local affiliates. To protect local broadcasters, the Satellite Home Viewer Act (SHVA) prohibits sending distant signals to viewers who can normally receive the local signals over the air.


The court found that EchoStar had also failed to show that it had removed the improper customers and failed to properly use Individual Location Longley-Rice analysis to determine which subscribers could receive local signals and hence would be banned from the distant signals.


Dimitrouleas also said that EchoStar Chairman Charles Ergen broke a pledge made to the court under penalty of perjury to remove certain ineligible subscribers from the distant service.


"It appears that EchoStar executives, including Mr. Ergen ... when confronted with the prospect of cutting off network programming to hundreds of thousands of subscribers, elected instead to break Mr. Ergen's promise to the court," the judge wrote.


Ergen apparently was hoping for a change in SHVA-which did occur-grandfathering the formerly illegal viewers. But the judge said that when Ergen made his promise to the court, he failed to qualify his words with the possibility of the legal change, of which Ergen was well aware and was in fact lobbying for.


EchoStar issued a statement viewing the ruling in a positive light, claiming the court found its practices "in substantial compliance" with copyright laws and ordered no damages.


EchoStar said it would appeal portions of the ruling, including a plea to keep current distant signal subscribers grandfathered. The company said about 10 percent of its distance signal subscribers could lose that service when the company re-examines who is qualified to receive them.


NAB hailed the ruling as a victory for free, local television viewers.


"The court found that EchoStar is illegally transmitting distant ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC stations to hundreds of thousands of ineligible subscribers," NAB said in a statement. "The Court found that EchoStar's violations were 'clearly willful.'"