I couldn't be more happy that someone has come to their senses in the US Legislature and realized that the DMCA goes too far in its grandiose idea to protect Copyrights.
On Tuesday (2/27/07), Rep. Rick Boucher (D - VA) introduced H.R. 1201 into the House of Representatives that seeks to add six new exemptions to the US Code section 1201. This is the Fair Use Act that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA and evil to lots of people) amended and gave companies far reaching rights to sue people over previously legal copying of materials. You can find more about what the DMCA did here at Wikipedia and here from the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
What's important about this bill is that it restores some otherwise understood legal uses of materials.
Whether or not this goes anywhere is still up in the air, but at least someone has made an effort to restore some sanity to this whole scenario. The EFF has posted their support here.
As I've said before, "You can take my TiVo when you pry it from my cold, dead hands!"
Technorati Tags: Rick Boucher, H.R. 1201, DMCA
On Tuesday (2/27/07), Rep. Rick Boucher (D - VA) introduced H.R. 1201 into the House of Representatives that seeks to add six new exemptions to the US Code section 1201. This is the Fair Use Act that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA and evil to lots of people) amended and gave companies far reaching rights to sue people over previously legal copying of materials. You can find more about what the DMCA did here at Wikipedia and here from the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
What's important about this bill is that it restores some otherwise understood legal uses of materials.
- Teachers will be allowed to make copies of audiovisual works for teaching purposes and may circumvent any copy protection scheme in the process.
- You can't be forced to watch commercials or content you find offensive and you may circumvent any copy protection scheme in order to do so. TiVo users of the world rejoice!
- You can make copies for personal use across a home network but not for sharing across the Internet (ala Napster) and you may circumvent any copy protection scheme in order to do so.
- You may circumvent any copy protection scheme in order to seek out any work that is in the public domain.
- You may circumvent any copy protection scheme in order to do research or write an article, such as a review, if you are a reporter or researcher.
- Backup copies of materials are allowed and you may circumvent any copy protection scheme in order to do so.
Whether or not this goes anywhere is still up in the air, but at least someone has made an effort to restore some sanity to this whole scenario. The EFF has posted their support here.
As I've said before, "You can take my TiVo when you pry it from my cold, dead hands!"
Technorati Tags: Rick Boucher, H.R. 1201, DMCA
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