L.A. Law: High Def in Hollywood

Two lawyers are sitting in a bar. One turns to the other and asks, "Want a sneak peak at the latest Hollywood blockbuster?" Sounds like the opening to a great joke. This one isn't a joking matter. A petition filed with the FCC by the MPAA (you know, the folks who put ratings on films) is asking the FCC to go back on a previous ruling to protect Hollywood's rights. Poor, poor, Hollywood. This is one of those good news/bad news stories. It's been a long week, let's do the good news first. Hollywood is talking with major cable and satellite systems about offering video-on-demand HD movies significantly earlier than the movie's DVD or Blu-ray release, timed much closer to the theatrical release. That's it for the good news.