DMCA and fair use...

[shilala]

I asked a question about backing up my dvd's and games. It turned into a bit of a pissing match.
I wanted to hear what folk's understanding of the DMCA and "fair use" is.
The way I understand "fair use" is that I'm allowed one copy of anything I buy to be used as a backup. I understand that it IS legal to circumvent copyright protection technology in this case. It's an exception written into the law.
I also understand that it is illegal to market copyright circumvention devices for the purpose of financial gain. That's been held up in court in the case of DVDXcopy, etc. That's why freeware such as dvdshrink and dvddecrypter aren't being sued.
Am I on target here, or am I way off base?
I've read a summary of the DMCA and I haven't found anything contrary to what I understand, but I'm not up to date on all the things that have been tried in court to date.

 

[AnyMal]

Originally posted by: shilala
I asked a question about backing up my dvd's and games. It turned into a bit of a pissing match.
I wanted to hear what folk's understanding of the DMCA and "fair use" is.
The way I understand "fair use" is that I'm allowed one copy of anything I buy to be used as a backup. I understand that it IS legal to circumvent copyright protection technology in this case. It's an exception written into the law.
I also understand that it is illegal to market copyright circumvention devices for the purpose of financial gain. That's been held up in court in the case of DVDXcopy, etc. That's why freeware such as dvdshrink and dvddecrypter aren't being sued.
Am I on target here, or am I way off base?
I've read a summary of the DMCA and I haven't found anything contrary to what I understand, but I'm not up to date on all the things that have been tried in court to date.

First of all, DMCA and "Fair Use" should not be identified together as they are completely separate legal terms. Fair Use is outlined by US Copyright laws and is quite restrictive. Historically, it was defined in the wake of Hollywood vs Sony debacle of the early 1980's when Hollywood alleged that VCR's sole purpose was to pirate TV programming and movies. The Supreme Court decided that because VCR's have far more legitimate uses then potentially illegal, they should not be outlawed. That's how the term "fair use" came about You can search for "fair use clause" and read for official website has to say about it, try www.copyright.gov for more info.

It is a common misconception that "fair use" entitles people to make "backup" copies of the music and movies. Not true. Every CD and DVD contain legal disclaimers that clearely state that "any reproduction" of said works is strictly prohibited.

As for any rule, there are excpetions, though in this case are very limited. For instance, if you can prove that you made copies for educational or scientific research, you'll be off the hook.

DMCA, which was adopted in 1998 deals striclty with "digital media", such as DVD's and computer games. The basic premise is simple, if the media you're buying contains any sort of copy protection technology (i.e. Macromedia, region restrictions), circumventing or breaking such technology is illegal. One example would be the demise of 123Studios, the makes of DVDXCopy.

 

[SelArom]

so legally I can't make copies of music and dvds I bought? I can't rip them to mp3s? I mean, I just CAN'T? well I mean, of course, I CAN, but I would be breaking the LAW even if they are mine and I paid for them, is that really what the law says? I thought you could do whatever you wanted to stuff you owned as long as you didn't give it/sell it to anyone else.

is that really the actual written law? what a bunch of b@stards!!!

 

[mugs]

Anymal covered it pretty well. http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/iclp/dmca1.htm gives you a good overview of the DMCA.

Pertinent sections:

Does permit the cracking of copyright protection devices, however, to conduct encryption research, assess product interoperability, and test computer security systems.

Provides exemptions from anti-circumvention provisions for nonprofit libraries, archives, and educational institutions under certain circumstances.

So is it legal to make backup copies of your kids' DVDs in case they desroy them? No. Is it immoral? No. Do the movie studios care? I highly doubt it, but they have been known to threaten nursery schools with legal action for showing movies to a group of children.

SelArom, intellectual property is tricky in that you only own the media and limited usage rights to what is on it. If IP producers were not able to limit the use of their IP, anyone who wanted to could publicly show a movie and not give the studio any money (just to give you an example). That would take away a lot of the incentive for movie studios to produce films. For more information on copyright myths and misconceptions, see http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html

 

[SelArom]

meh... to me it seems like they're just looking to get as much money from people as possible. I mean, of course it's wrong to show a movie to others and not pay to those who created it (as you say in your example). Of course it's wrong to make a copy of a CD and give it to your friend.

But I don't understand why they feel it is wrong to allow people to back up things they paid for. I mean, exactly as you said some people want to protect their investment from children, dogs, butterfingers, etc... what is wrong with that? I like to rip cds and dvds for my htpc so I can store all my media in one place. I'm not going to copy it for someone, so why should they tell me I can't do it?

Granted, they probably won't do anything to me, but that doesn't mean I'm free to make backups. I do, but it's unfair that I'm breaking the law when I do just because greedy corporations want to make sure nobody steals ther intellectual property (as if these stupid laws ever stopped anybody)

it's just unfair.

 

[imported_waldo]

Originally posted by: AnyMal

Originally posted by: shilala
I asked a question about backing up my dvd's and games. It turned into a bit of a pissing match.
I wanted to hear what folk's understanding of the DMCA and "fair use" is.
The way I understand "fair use" is that I'm allowed one copy of anything I buy to be used as a backup. I understand that it IS legal to circumvent copyright protection technology in this case. It's an exception written into the law.
I also understand that it is illegal to market copyright circumvention devices for the purpose of financial gain. That's been held up in court in the case of DVDXcopy, etc. That's why freeware such as dvdshrink and dvddecrypter aren't being sued.
Am I on target here, or am I way off base?
I've read a summary of the DMCA and I haven't found anything contrary to what I understand, but I'm not up to date on all the things that have been tried in court to date.

First of all, DMCA and "Fair Use" should not be identified together as they are completely separate legal terms. Fair Use is outlined by US Copyright laws and is quite restrictive. Historically, it was defined in the wake of Hollywood vs Sony debacle of the early 1980's when Hollywood alleged that VCR's sole purpose was to pirate TV programming and movies. The Supreme Court decided that because VCR's have far more legitimate uses then potentially illegal, they should not be outlawed. That's how the term "fair use" came about You can search for "fair use clause" and read for official website has to say about it, try www.copyright.gov for more info.

It is a common misconception that "fair use" entitles people to make "backup" copies of the music and movies. Not true. Every CD and DVD contain legal disclaimers that clearely state that "any reproduction" of said works is strictly prohibited.

As for any rule, there are excpetions, though in this case are very limited. For instance, if you can prove that you made copies for educational or scientific research, you'll be off the hook.

DMCA, which was adopted in 1998 deals striclty with "digital media", such as DVD's and computer games. The basic premise is simple, if the media you're buying contains any sort of copy protection technology (i.e. Macromedia, region restrictions), circumventing or breaking such technology is illegal. One example would be the demise of 123Studios, the makes of DVDXCopy.

As far as I know, that isn't entirely accurate. DCMA and Fair Use agreed, should not be placed together as they have very different meanings. In regards to copyright protection, I believe you are allowed to do anything with the media provided that you do not sell it, or make it available to individuals that have not purchased the right to use it. You are allowed to make personal backup copies if my recollection serves me correctly. Yes, companies do put disclaimer and copyright notices on the front of their products and the like, however, a good portion of the time they are not legally backed, and would not be backed in teh courts of law.

I believe that in the Sony case, the courts ruled that consumers were allowed to do as they pleased with personal media, and that was why it was held to be legal. The fact that they could make copies and sell them was a side issue, that the courts were not willing to police, by preventing some potential good for the consumers.

 

[shilala]

I did a little more researching, and although it's not completely clear, it appears that backing up games and DVDs is illegal. I read a lot of fluff when DVDXCopy was going through the courts. They lost, but I thought they lost on the basis of "marketing a circumvention device".
Turns out they were trying to get law behind their product and it failed.
There's a bill before the House that is trying to relax circumvention and backup rules.