Australia's powerful Nine Network has failed in its efforts to crush tiny IceTV, with the courts rejecting claims the IceTV Electronic Program Guide infringes Nine's copyright.

Nine set out to crush IceTV last year because the small Sydney startup had the audacity to offer Australians the Electronic Program Guide that the networks have fought against for so long - a service that would help kickstart digital television in this country. IceTV's service lets users download the week's television schedule to a Personal Video Recorder, upon which they can call up schedule on their television screen and select in advance programs to record. EPGs encourage PVR use, PVRs encourage ad-skipping and advertising is the life blood of television networks. Therefore Nine decided to set its lawyers on IceTV.

Nine waited until days before IceTV was to float on the Australian stock exchange last year before taking legal action, forcing IceTV to cancel its $4 million public float and hand cheques back to investors. Ever since IceTV's business has been hampered by Nine's legal vultures circling above.

Almost a year later, Justice Annabelle Bennett yesterday declared IceTV's service does not infringe Nine's copyright. The IceTV ruling does not grant networks and other EPG providers free rein to copy programming schedules. Justice Bennett found IceTV's EPG to be a separately compiled work rather than a copy of Nine's copyrighted weekly schedule. IceTV also holds patents regarding the way it compiles its program schedule.

The judge will hear from the parties before making orders as to costs and has ruled IceTV is not precluded from bringing a claim for unjustified threats of copyright infringement. You can bet the scuttled float will come up when talk turns to compensation.

The irony is that meanwhile the free to air networks including Nine have agreed to share their EPGs for free, but only using DRM that will require set top box manufacturers to change their software and add an back channel so the networks can spy on your viewing habits. With the legal threat lifted, IceTV can also attempt to woo set top box makers.

The Nine Network has treated viewers with contempt for years - driving Australians to the internet to download television shows. The world is changing and Nine has to move with the times or be swept aside as an irrelevant old world media player. When the revolution comes, the big wigs at Nine will be first against the wall. You can lock that in, Eddie.