GristyMcFisty lets us know that the
U.S. Copyright Office on Tuesday posted comments
from industry watchdog group,
the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation). The EFF requested
protection for certain consumer uses of DVDs.
The EFF has urged the Register of
Copyrights to grand exemptions to the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright
Act) ban on circumventing technological locks that prevent consumers from
fully enjoying the digital media they have purchased:
"We welcome the Copyright
Office's interest in understanding the real impact of the DMCA on
consumers' everyday non-infringing uses of CDs and DVDs," stated EFF Staff
Gwen Hinze. "We have urged the Copyright Office to grant exemptions to
remove the DMCA"s chilling effect on consumers" existing rights and to
restore the constitutionally-mandated balance to copyright
law."
EFF filed the comments in
response to questions posed by the Copyright Office following public
hearings held in April and May 2003. In oral testimony and post-hearing
comments, EFF asked the Copyright Office to grant exemptions to give
consumers guidance about legal uses of the digital media they have
purchased.
The Copyright Office asked
for further information about how DVD technology works. In particular, it
asked if the Content Scramble System (CSS) on DVD movies, along with the
ban on bypassing CSS, prevents consumers from legally modifying DVD
players to fast forward through "unskippable" advertisements and play
foreign movies on U.S. DVD players. The Copyright Office has also asked
the RIAA to identify the number and titles of copy-protected CDs released
in the U.S.
The comments are part of the
Copyright Office"s tri-ennial review of the impact of the DMCA"s ban on
circumvention of technological protection measures that control access to
digital works. The Copyright Register and Librarian of Congress can grant
exemptions from the DMCA ban for particular protected works if the
Copyright Office finds that the prohibition has resulted, or is likely to
result in substantial adverse impact on users" non-infringing uses in the
next three years.
EFF asked the Copyright
Office to grant DMCA exemptions to allow consumers to:
- Play copy-protected audio
CDs that malfunction intentionally to prevent playback
- View foreign region-coded
DVD movies on US players
- Fast-forward through
unskippable commercials prior to movies on DVDs
- Play and make full use of
public domain motion
pictures
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The Copyright Office has to take a decision on this matter by October 27,
2003.
Source: EFF
