Porn TV Wins on Appeal

oriented TV channels, such as Playboy and Spice, be required to find a way to completely block their signals from bleeding through to those who don't subscribe. \n The ruling, pursued by Playboy Enterprises Inc. for two and a half years, removes yet another restriction placed in the 1997 Communications Decency Act, most of which had already been found to place unconstitutional restraints on free speech transmitted over the Internet. \n Section 505 of the act was intended to prevent unsupervised children from catching even brief glimpses of sex acts on channels that specialize in porn videos and movies. In some cases, audio and video signals can bleed through the device that is supposed to filter out the channels to cable customers who don't subscribe to them. In those cases, there may be instances of brief and distorted sex scene images. \n Playboy argued that other premium channels, such as HBO, are exempt from the law even though they may occasionally show similar adult fare late at night. If Playboy had to comply with the law, it would cost the company $25 million in revenues over the next decade, company lawyers said. \n In addition, it would cost cable systems millions of dollars more to install scrambling technology that would remove any trace of bleeding signals. \n The Justice Department said there are 31 million children who can see or hear Playboy or Spice channels because the signals get past the blocking devices used by cable systems. A lawyer for the department told of a boy who was upset about images of sex acts he saw on television during a sleepover at the home of a friend. The department said the law was intended to stop that from happening. \n The three-judge federal panel conceded that the government had an interest in the welfare of children. But, it pointed out, the government never presented any evidence to show a link between children looking at porn and harmful psychological effects. Plus, the court added, two-thirds of all American homes don't have children. \n The ruling, from a three-judge panel of the Third Circuit Court of Appeal in Philadelphia, may be appealed by the government but no decision has been announced.