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Disney hits out at web video restrictions Disney CEO Bob Iger has warned that restricting the viewing of video content online could lead to a public backlash and be viewed "as anti-consumer and anti-technology." Iger was speaking after Disney earlier this week announced it would be making some shows from ABC and ESPN available free-to-air via YouTube. It also came as speculation continues to mount that the Mouse House is set to acquire a stake in YouTube's ad-supported rival Hulu. "Preventing people from watching any shows online unless they subscribe (to a cable TV service) can be viewed as anti-consumer and anti-technology," said Iger at The Cable Show conference in Washington, DC. "That's something we would find very difficult to embrace." He added that the company's founder, Walt Disney, "viewed technology as a friend and not a foe," and said: "At Disney, we believe that technology inspires artists to create at higher levels, but artists also challenge our technologists to provide them with the tools. That's exactly what we must continue to do in cable. Technology can pose all types of threats to existing businesses, but look at it as a means to maximise opportunity. Iger pointed to the initial opposition to TV when radio was in its prime and the movie studios' fights against the VCR as examples. "None of that stopped it or prevented those businesses from taking maximum advantage of those new platforms. You can't slow the pace of technology - the challenge is to prosper from it," he said. Iger's comments came as many at the Washington conference discussed TV Everywhere, a conceptual framework led by Time Warner that would offer many more shows online to consumers who pay monthly fees for cable TV services. The move is designed to stem the damage online is having on traditional TV. Comcast is working on a similar concept, entitled OnDemand Online, and Iger's comments put Disney - which does not operate a cable TV service - at odds with the proposals. Adam Benzine 3 Apr 2009 © C21 Media 2009 
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