The Zap2IT forums has a thread about the shutdown (you need to have a Zap2IT login to get to the forum). One of the posts on the thread about the shutdown expands on the reasons for the free guide data shutting down:
– Continued use of the service to support commercial products, in violation of the agreement.
– Commercial products continued to grow despite previous appeals that this activity stop.
– There are significant changes to the supporting data structure forthcoming and we could not devote resources to the continued upkeep and enhancements of the service.
– Maintenance of the service is impacting our resource pool for other projects.
– We sought alternative options but were unable to find a solution.
– We recognize the hardship this creates for the user community. We are open to alternative solutions and would consider proposals that met the needs of the user community and our company.
– We looked into options to turn this into a paid service however we do not have the infrastructure at this time.
So it seems that the folks selling MythTV based solutions which used the guide data, as well as possible other commercial uses (the was no real way to check what system was connecting to the guide data) are the main reasons for the service shutdown.
That seems reasonable to me… It’s inconvenient for MythTV users in the US, but there are other guide data sources. It is certainly disappointing that people we misusing the free service and caused it’s shutdown for everyone.