Dolby Buys MIT's DTV Vote for $30 Million

An anonymous reader writes "MIT's campus newspaper, The Tech is reporting that the university will be receiving $30 million from Dolby Laboratories. This payment is in return for MIT's vote on the "Grand Alliance" committee responsible for choosing the audio standard for digital television (DTV). Dolby also appears to have paid off Zenith, another committee member. The professor representing MIT on the committee stands to receive $8 million personally. But here's where it gets truly odd. After dutifully voting for the Dolby standard, MIT attempted to collect on the bribe, but Dolby refused to pay. So, MIT sued to collect. In the end, MIT and Dolby settled out of court. Says The Tech, "There's clearly a conflict of interest," [MIT's Jack] Turner, [associate director of the Technology Licensing Office] says, but, "it can't be avoided. MIT's reputation as being pure... in its academic evaluation of things is very important." Yeah sure."

Quick scan of the article

[Bobulusman]

The MIT people choose the format they did because they would have made $8 million in royalties and the like. (This was 1993)

Then, in 1997, they had a royalty dispute with Dolby over the royalties. The settlement out of court is the $30 million mentioned.

The interesting part is that that 1993 decision helped make US digital tv use dolby instead of mpeg, like they apparently use in Europe

No rooftop antenna needed.

[Anonymous Coward]

Soldier on over to the AVS forum [avsforum.com] and observe that lots of folks (myself included) receive ATSC DTV just fine with a simple indoor antenna.

Real Web Address

[no soup for you]

MIT's The Tech [mit.edu] is actually located at http://www-tech.mit.edu/... way to check those links.

Royalty Payment, not out-and-out bribe

[__aaahtg7394]

After reading the article, i'm a bit less outraged. The 30M$ is royalty payments, apparently on technology developed at MIT. The professor in question is the sole inventor, which is why they're giving hime 8M$ of it.

Please read the article, it's actually a bit more of "Dolby tried to screw MIT out of royalties" instead of "MIT accepts bribe to vouch for Dolby standard."

Educational experience

[mao che minh]

You have to start questioning the point of having this commitee. Furthermore,you have to doubt it's validity outright. I think that there is much to learn from this though. This gives us an insight into what is happening in those exchanges between politician and MPAA/RIAA lawyers/spokes people. They will win legistlation with money, we must win it back in the hearts of the people (and it will take a lot of people).

Re:It's so funny when people even ADMIT it...

[BurKaZoiD]

I work for a higher education institution as an application developer. The office I work in is more or less sandwiched between academic affairs and administrative affairs, so I'm privy to a good deal of information about various university dealings, even though I'm just a grunt low on the totem pole. Even though I see and hear alot of things that would piss off alot of parents trying to get their kids in school, something like this still shocks me. I love working where I work, but shit, higher education is one screwed up place. The politics are absolutely UNREAL. It still amazes me the power some individuals wield, especially when they shouldn't be in a position to wield ANY power at all.

It's too bad I can't comment on some of the just plain wrong stuff I see going on, but I need my job.

Ok, this post was worthless, mod me down. #;^)

Re:The FCC is bungling DTV

[Twirlip of the Mists]

You know, I do feel obligated to point out that ATSC-standard digital television signals using the 8VSB standard have been broadcast in the US full-time since 1998. You can receive 8VSB transmissions-- for free-- with nothing more than a decent pair of rabbit-ears, or, as in my case, with an inexpensive rooftop antenna. In my house, we watch at least six or eight hours of HDTV a week, and have been since the summer. Just last night, ABC broadcast Saving Private Ryan uncut and unedited in HDTV with, yeah, Dolby Digital sound.

You can also get HDTV via satellite-- HBO and Showtime have HDTV channels-- and in some markets via cable.

It's a gross exaggeration to say that the DTV system in the US is "bungled" or "broken."

Kind of Funny...

[Milinar]

Since the founder of bose works for MIT. [emediaplan.com]

It's not quite as bad as it sounds

[DarklordSatin]

Being from MIT myself, I have actually read the article that is being referred to here and although I agree it was a pretty poor thing to do, it's not as bad as it sounds. The truth of the matter is not that Dolby bought MIT's vote for $30 million, but that if the standard was chosen MIT would be in line for $30 million in royalties. In the end it's more halfway between bribery and voting for oneself than strict bribery.