AB 1116, as amended, Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection. Connected televisions.
Existing law makes it a crime for a person who owns, controls, operates, or manages a satellite or cable television corporation to use an electronic device to record, transmit, or observe any events or listen to, record, or monitor any conversations that take place inside a subscriber’s residence, workplace, or place of business, without obtaining the express written consent of the subscriber. Existing law requires a device that includes an integrated and enabled wireless access point that is sold as new in the state for use in a small office, home office, or residential setting to be manufactured to possess certain featuresbegin delete andend deletebegin insert orend insert advisories, including, among others, protection on the device
that requires an affirmative action by the consumer prior to allowing use of the product and an advisory for the consumer regarding how to protect his or her wireless network connection from unauthorized access.
This bill would prohibit a person or entity frombegin delete using the features in a connected television that allow the collection, recording, storage, analysis, transmission, interpretation, or other use of the spoken word of a personend deletebegin insert providing the operation of a voice recognition featureend insert within this state without prominentlybegin delete informingend deletebegin insert informing, during the initial setup or installation of a connected television,
eitherend insert the user orbegin delete aend deletebegin insert theend insert person designated by the user to perform the initial setup or installation of the connectedbegin delete television, except as specified.end deletebegin insert television.end insert This bill would further prohibitbegin delete a manufacturer of a connected television or a third party that contracts with a manufacturer of a connected television, as specified, from using or selling for any advertising purpose any spoken word or other sound that was collected by a connected television, including for the purpose of improving the function, operation, or features of the connected television.end deletebegin insert
any actual recordings of spoken word collected through the operation of a voice recognition feature by the manufacturer of a connected television, or a 3rd party contracting with a manufacturer of a connected television, for the purpose of improving the voice recognition feature from being sold or used for any advertising purpose.end insert This bill would prohibit a person or entity from compelling a manufacturer orbegin insert otherend insert entitybegin delete offering features that allow the collection, recording,
storage, analysis, transmission, interpretation, or other use of spoken words,end deletebegin insert providing the operation of a voice recognition featureend insert to build specific features for the purpose of allowing an investigative or law enforcement officer to monitor communications through that feature. This bill would limit the liability of a manufacturer to functionality provided at the time of the original sale of a connected television and specifically exclude liability for functionality provided by applicationsbegin insert that the user chooses to use in the cloud or areend insert downloaded and installed by a user. This bill would define terms for its purposes. This bill would prohibit a waiver of these prohibitions and authorize their enforcement by injunction or civil penalty in a court of competent jurisdiction by the
Attorney General or a district attorney. This bill specifies that its provisions shall not be deemed to create a private right of action or limit any existing private right of action. This bill would provide that these provisions are severable.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Chapter 35 (commencing with Section 22948.20)
2is added to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, to
3read:
4
(a) begin deleteExcept for voice commands that are not recorded begin insertA end insertperson or entity
8or transmitted beyond the connected television, a end delete
9shall notbegin delete use the features in a connected television that allow the begin insert provide the operation
10collection, recording, storage, analysis, transmission, interpretation,
11or other use of the spoken word of a personend delete
12of a voice recognition featureend insert within this state without
prominently
13begin delete informingend deletebegin insert informing, during the initial setup or installation of a
14connected television, eitherend insert the user orbegin delete aend deletebegin insert theend insert person designated by
15the user to perform the initial setup or installation of the connected
16television.begin delete A manufacturer of a connected television or a third
17party that contracts with a manufacturer of a connected television
18to provide a voice recognition feature shall not use
or sell for any
19advertising purpose any spoken word or other sound that was
20collected by a connected television, including for the purpose of
21improving the function, operation, or features of the connected
22television, or for the provision of an accessible user interface for
23people with disabilities.end delete
24(b) Any actual recordings of spoken word collected through the
25operation of a voice recognition feature by the manufacturer of a
26connected television for the purpose of improving the voice
27recognition feature, including, but not limited to, the operation of
28an accessible user interface for people with disabilities, shall not
29be sold or used for any advertising purpose.
30(c) Any actual recordings of spoken word collected
through the
31operation of a voice recognition feature by a third party
32contracting with a manufacturer for the purpose of improving the
33voice recognition feature, including, but not limited to, the
P4 1operation of an accessible user interface for people with
2disabilities, shall not be sold or used for any advertising purpose.
3(b)
end delete
4begin insert(d)end insert A person or entity shall not compel a manufacturer orbegin insert otherend insert
5 entitybegin delete offering features that allow the collection, recording, storage,
6analysis, transmission, interpretation, or other use of spoken words,end delete
7begin insert
providing the operation of a voice recognition featureend insert to build
8specific features for the purpose of allowing an investigative or
9law enforcement officer to monitor communications through that
10feature.
11(c)
end delete
12begin insert(e)end insert A manufacturer shall only be liable for functionality provided
13at the time of the original sale of a connected television and shall
14not be liable for functionality provided by applicationsbegin insert
that the
15user chooses to use in the cloud or areend insert downloaded and installed
16by a user.
17(d)
end delete
18begin insert(f)end insert Thisbegin delete sectionend deletebegin insert chapterend insert shall not apply to any product or service
19provided by a company covered under Section 637.5 of the Penal
20Code.
For purposes of this chapter, the following
22definitions shall apply:
23(a) “Connected television” means a video device designed for
24home use to receive television signals and reproduce them on an
25integrated, physical screen display that exceeds 12 inches, except
26that this term shall not include a personal computer, portable
27device, or a separate device that connects physically or wirelessly
28to a television, including, but not limited to, a set-top box, video
29game console, or digital video recorder.
30(b) “User” means a person whobegin insert originallyend insert
purchases, leases, or
31takes ownership of a connected television. A person who is
32incidentally recorded when a voice recognition feature is activated
33by a user shall not be deemed to be a user.
34(c) “Voice recognition feature” means the function of a
35connected television that allows the collection, recording, storage,
36analysis, transmission, interpretation, or other use of spoken words
37or other sounds, except that this term shall not include voice
38commands that are not recorded or transmitted beyond the
39connected television.
Any waiver of thebegin delete prohibitions in Section 22948.21end delete
2begin insert provisions of this chapterend insert is contrary to public policy and void and
3unenforceable.
(a) Actions for relief pursuant to this chapter may
5be prosecuted exclusively in a court of competent jurisdiction in
6a civil action brought in the name of the people of the State of
7California by the Attorney General or by any district attorney. This
8chapter shall not be deemed to create a private right of action, or
9limit any existing private right of action.
10(b) A court may enjoin a person whobegin insert knowinglyend insert engages, has
11engaged, or proposes to engage, in a violation of this chapter. The
12court may make any orders or judgments as may be necessary to
13prevent a violation of
this chapter.
14(c) A person whobegin insert knowinglyend insert engages, has engaged, or proposes
15to engage, in a violation of this chapter shall be liable for a civil
16penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500)
17for each connected television sold or leased in violation of this
18chapter. If the action is brought by the Attorney General, the
19penalty shall be deposited into the General Fund. If the action is
20brought by a district attorney, the penalty shall be paid to the
21treasurer of the county in which the judgment was entered.
The remedies or penalties provided by this chapter
23are cumulative to each other and to the remedies or penalties
24available under all other laws of the state.
The provisions of this chapter are severable. If any
26provision of this chapter or its application are held to be invalid,
27that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that
28can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.
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