On June 29th, the United States Supreme Court denied the petition for a writ of certiorari upholding the legality of Cablevision’s remote digital video recorder (DVR), reports the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), Arlington, Va. The technology is functionally identical to a home DVR, and allows viewers to record programs on a remote system within Cablevision’s offices. The following statement can be attributed to CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro.

“We applaud the US Supreme Court today for letting stand a decision that supports the growth of technology and innovation. The ability to record television programming has become commonplace to millions of Americans which has benefited consumers and allowed the consumer technology and content industries to contribute billions of dollars to our economy and create millions of jobs.

“From a common-sense standpoint, the court’s decision was a slam-dunk. The court has already ruled that consumers have the right to time-shift television shows. Whether the bits reside in a box under your TV or a box in the cable field office is not relevant.

“CEA has been at the forefront of promoting digital technologies for decades. The ability to shift content among devices and products within the home is paramount in allowing technology to thrive and allowing companies to continue to design and develop new products.

“In addition, remote computing and data storage, like that allowed by the remote DVR, offers extraordinary benefits. Indeed Americans already enjoy this technology through services like Google applications and .Mac. An adverse ruling would have hamstrung this exciting new area of innovation.

“We commend the Supreme Court for protecting our ability to innovate and ensure that America remains the world’s technology leader.”

For more information, visit www.CE.org.