• Variety, Thursday, July 26, 2012 3:56 PM

Dish Network has quietly implemented a series of three changes to DVRs with AutoHop commercial-skipping technology  -- a move that may help boost the satcaster's legal defense in its current suits with broadcasters trying to stop AutoHop use.

"While the changes may seem minor, they seem to represent a calculated strategy on Dish's behalf to shift responsibility to viewers for the recording and ad-skipping rather than let them passively receive these features," writes Andrew Wallenstein and Ted Johnson. "That fine-tuning could become noteworthy to a judge assessing the legality of AutoHop considering a similar case that has been cited as a potential precedent for Dish..."

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