The question of legality in the sense of copyright has been around since man first put pen to papyrus or painted on cave walls. And personally, I am very strong on the issue of copyright; it continues to amaze me that despite all the warnings on packaging and so on, many people simply don't understand that copying music, DVDs or game console cartridges is simply breaking the current laws. (“I bought it so I own it to do what I like with it” is the normal chant.) Ignorance is no defence as they say.

But it strikes me there is a very grey area and that is when a TV program is downloaded from the ‘net and played back before it is actually shown here.

Now let’s see; Dr Who for example is paid for by public money in the UK and sold to TV stations all around the world. However, it is shown here on a free-to-air non-commercial (at this stage) channel and therefore no further money changes hands, unless you count merchandising. So if it is watched via an internet download, has anybody been swindled – especially as 99% if not 100% will also watch it on TV when it finally gets here and probably by the box set as well? In a sense, it’s a little like recording the show from TV to VHS or DVD and watching it later – or time shifting as is the current buzzword.

So is time shifting backwards illegal or immoral and forward time shifting OK?

This is of course a different ballgame to say Torchwood and Top Gear. While made by a non-commercial channel again (and we have to admit the BBC is damn good at this stuff, probably the best there is), they are shown, in Australia at least, on commercial channels. Yes, we can classify SBS as commercial even though like community radio, I believe they refer to it as ‘sponsorship’?

If we do not watch these shows on their designated channel and only on download, we are certainly depriving the advertisers their rights bought with cold, hard cash. The fact these should be on the ABC is a moot point of course.

What’s your take?