"Any EPG service provider will be able to receive our data and make it available on a range of retail consumer equipment," says Free TV Australia chief executive Julie Flynn.

"Free TV members acknowledge widespread availability of electronic program information is a critical plank in the transition to digital television, and today's announcement is a major step forward. Free-to-view digital television is an open platform – available to every household in Australia. In the same spirit, we believe all consumers should be able to access our electronic program information."

This doesn't sound like the same spirit that's driven Australia's Nine Network to drag EPG provider Ice TV through the courts, claiming Ice TV's listings breach Nine's copyright over its program guide. The law states you can't copyright a list of facts, but there is legal precedent in Nine's favour. Still, it's painfully clear to fans of late night TV shows such as Star Trek the networks treat schedules, and viewers, with contempt. They even deliberately finish their shows late so you miss the beginning of what's on the other channels. Perhaps Nine's lawyers are going to claim that the TV schedule is actually a work of fiction and thus entitled to copyright protection.

Free TV Australia's announcement sounds like great news for the majority of people who don't own an internet-enabled PVR - like those from Topfield and Beyonwiz or media centre PCs. Unless your PVR is internet-enabled, you can currently can't access an online EPG like that from IceTV. It also overcomes some hurdles for the introduction of TiVo in Australia. 

Most hard drive recorders and set top boxes you buy down at Harvey Norman are perfectly capable of accepting a 14 day Electronic Program Guide but don't have internet access. They receive the data embedded in the broadcast signal. Networks already use this feature, but they only tell you what's on now and what's on next (and even this is often wrong).

When I first heard the news from Free TV Australia I assumed the networks didn't want to use this feature because they want to charge for EPG data, which means finding an alternative delivery method. To be sure, I rang Free TV Australia's Julie Flynn to check.

I was wrong, Flynn assured me the commercial networks are prepared to give this data away for free, although the do "reserve the right" to charge in the future. Fantastic! Free EPG for everyone, right? Wrong.

So what's the problem? Read the conclusion on page 2 to find out. CONTINUED