Brian Smith
Netflix Advocates for Amendment to VPPA
Netflix, the popular DVD rental and video streaming service, is currently supporting an amendment to the Video Privacy Protection Act (VPPA) (18 U.S.C. 2710). The proposed amendment would allow video tape service providers (which includes Netflix) to disclose a consumer’s video rental history if that consumer has given written consent prior to the disclosure. Under current law, a company must seek consent “at the time the disclosure is sought.” Netflix claims that this reform is necessary before a proposed integration of Netflix and Facebook can be achieved, which will allow users to share the titles of the movies they watch with their Facebook friends.
Privacy advocacy organization EPIC claims that this reform would shift the control over a user’s rental history form the consumer to the company, allowing companies like Netflix to broadcast a user’s rental and viewing history automatically after a one-time consent. The amendment has already passed the House, and the Senate’s Privacy Subcommittee held hearings on the subject in January.
By liberalizing when and how video rental services may share a user’s rental history, this proposed amendment is poised to substantially weaken the VPPA. This legislation was originally passed in response to the disclosure of Robert Bork’s video rental history to the public, and integrating Facebook with Netflix could lead to similar inadvertent disclosures of video viewing history. Hopefully, future Supreme Court nominees will have the foresight not to include any journalists among their Facebook “friends.”
For more information, please see:
Washington Post’s Post Tech Blog: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-tech/post/netflix-discusses-video-privacy-act-along-with-earnings/2012/01/26/gIQAQFk3SQ_blog.html
EPIC’s Description of the VPPA: http://epic.org/privacy/vppa/#2011%20Netflix-Backed%20Amendment