From: Pablo Calamera <pablo@corp.webtv.net>
Date: Mon, 11 Nov 1996 11:56:33 -0800 (PST)
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: WebTV a "munition"
In-Reply-To: <v03007802aeac4fce1459@[204.254.74.48]>
Message-ID: <v03007803aead2dcf0204@[204.254.74.216]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


>>Date: Fri, 08 Nov 1996 17:16:00 -0800
>>From: Tom Weinstein <tomw@netscape.com>
>>Organization: Netscape Communications, Inc.
>>MIME-Version: 1.0
>>To: cypherpunks@toad.com
>>Subject: Re: WebTV a "munition"
>>Sender: owner-cypherpunks@toad.com
>>Precedence: bulk
>>
>>Rich Graves wrote:
>>>
>>> Eric Murray wrote:
>>> >
>>> > Page 3 of the San Jose Mercury News has a small blurb
>>> > about WebTV's browser/set-top box that "uses
>>> > computer-security technology so powerful that the
>>> > government is classifying it as a weapon
>>> > that will require a special export license before
>>> > it can be sold overseas".[...]
>>> > shouldn't be too difficult.  If they didn't use the "export"
>>> > level SSL CipherTypes, then what're they up to?  Are they
>>> > fighting crypto export laws (for which they should be congratulated
>>> > and supported) or are they just looking for free publicity?
>>>
>>> Based on the lack of public policy pronouncements from the WebTV
>>> folks, I would answer C) They're clueless. I'm not sure that
>>> management even understood, or wanted to understand, that they'd have
>>> an export problem.
>>> See http://www.webtv.net/
>>
>>Since Pablo Calamera works there, they can't be too clueless.
>>
>>--
>>You should only break rules of style if you can    | Tom Weinstein
>>coherently explain what you gain by so doing.      | tomw@netscape.com
>>


To clarify a bit, we're not talking about SSL here.  Also, some how it was
infered by some readers of the article that we were astonished about the
munitions classification of our product.  We were not.

Oh... and yes, we are not the least bit clueless (thanks Tom).  Below is a
company statement we released:

The WebTV Network is currently using a 128 bit encryption system that
gives our U.S. subscribers the most sophisticated security protection of
any online service today. It is our intent to offer our customers the most
secure environment for transactions and transmission with their WebTV
Network service. Our units, sold by Sony and Philips, include a sticker
that states that the product is not to be exported outside of the United
States.

However, the government restriction does not prevent us from exporting our
product outside of the United States. WebTV Networks has always intended to
announce its expansion plans in early 1997, providing global communication
using either 40 bits, now authorized by the government, or 56 bits which
Bill Clinton recently endorsed.


Pablo



-----------------------------------------
| Pablo Calamera
| Security Architect
| WebTV Networks, Inc. http://webtv.net/
| 305 Lytton Avenue
| Palo Alto, CA 94301
| . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
| mailto:pablo@corp.webtv.net
| voice:(415) 614-2749
-----------------------------------------