|
|
Posted by Colin B on 02/06/07 08:12
"PTravel" <ptravel@travelersvideo.com> wrote in message
news:52hno2F1mn8eaU1@mid.individual.net...
>
> "timepixdc" <timepixdc@aol.comx> wrote in message
> news:timepixdc-5D7898.04175502022007@news.lga.highwinds-media.com...
>> In article <52epkrF1ntf0sU1@mid.individual.net>,
>> "PTravel" <ptravel@travelersvideo.com> wrote:
>>
>>> >> Copying a DVD to a computer to watch on a plane is _probably_ fair
>>> >> use .
>>> >
>>> > Not in the USA.
>>>
>>> Really, counselor? Why do you think that?
>>
>> Because in order to do it you'd have to defeat the DVD's encryption.
>> That's a no-no.
>
> That's true for DVDs that have copy protection, but not for DVDs that do
> not.
>
> However, with that said, the scope of the DMCA is not at all clear in this
> regard: does the prohibition on circumventing copy protection schemes
> apply to content which is (a) licensed to the person doing the
> circumvention, and (b) circumvented for a legal, i.e. fair use, purpose?
>
> I'll give you a real-world example relevant to video production. Some
> years ago, I purchased, direct from a software vendor an FX package that
> had a copy protection scheme that required on-line validation based on
> email address which, in turn, results in a validation key that gets
> entered into the software. Over the years, as my computer systems
> changed, I've had to re-install this FX package a number of times. The
> last time I tried to do this, I couldn't recall the email address that I
> used to originally register. I emailed and called the software vendor
> multiple times, was promised that the records would be updated (I sent a
> scan of the original disks, manuals, etc., as well as my name and address,
> email addresses I've used over the years, etc.), but, after more than a
> month, the update never took place and I still couldn't install the
> software that I was licensed and authorized to use. Instead, I went
> on-line and found a key-generator for the product and used that to install
> it.
>
> By the plain language of the DMCA, I circumvented a technological
> copy-protection scheme. Did I violate the law by doing so?
>
> The case law on this is mixed and not at all clear, but I'll say this: I
> recently argued exactly this point in the context of defending a copyright
> infringement suit on behalf of a client. The lawsuit settled before the
> judge could rule on this question, but I'll put it like this -- the other
> side wasn't exactly jumping up and done screaming that Rule 11 (the
> Federal Rule of Civil Procedure that precludes frivolous arguments).
>
> So, even with respect to copy-protected DVDs, I'm not prepared to say that
> copying it to a computer for viewing, for example, on an airplane, would
> constitute either infringement or a DMCA violation.
So could the owner of a DVD make a back-up copy of his DVD on another DVD
and view the second DVD on his computer's DVD player while on an airplane?
In other words, does it matter what media the copy of the original DVD is
made on? For example, the copy could be stored on the computer's hard drive,
or it could be on a rewriteable disk or on a non-rewriteable disk, or it
could be on an ipod or similar.
Or asking the question more directly, can the owner of a copyrighted
protected DVD make one legal back-up copy of this DVD on whatever media he
chooses to do so?
Navigation:
[Reply to this message]
|