DMCA Open For Public Comment

plaxion writes "Beginning tomorrow (Nov 19), the U.S. Copyright Office will begin accepting suggestions for new exemptions to the DMCA. From what I've read, it appears they're seeking specific examples on how the law restricts research or inhibits the marketplace. In other words, they won't be considering issues of inconvenience or hypothetical problems. The comment period ends Dec 18."

Comments

Uh oh, folks

[GreyWolf3000]

> From what I've read, it appears they're seeking specific examples on how the law restricts research or inhibits the marketplace.

What about specific examples about how the law restricts or inhibits freedom? Or do only the marketplaces (i.e. MPAA/MIAA) count here? I hope they make a new forum, because I don't give a damn that the DMCA 'cripples' the marketplaces when I think about what it does to freedom!

Re:Uh oh, folks

[Dannon]

I would think (or at least, would hope) that one could make a solid arguement that the private citizens, as the Consumers, are an integral part of the marketplace. That, in fact, the marketplace exists for the Consumer as much as for the Producer. And, through market forces, Consumers should have the power to shape the behavior of Producers

In the Brave New World we've been slowly creeping towards, the trend is that the wants of the Consumer should be shaped around the demands of the market, rather than vice versa.

My little pipe dream

[L. VeGas]

The most obvious example of how it would negatively interfere with commerce is that it would instantly turn most of the nation's best and brightest into criminals. How much would it cost to arrest and prosecute everyone here?

Cutting through the legalese

[Randym]

...the Librarian of Congress may exempt certain classes of works from the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. The purpose of this rulemaking proceeding is to determine whether there are particular classes of works as to which users are, or are likely to be, adversely affected in their ability to make noninfringing uses due to the prohibition on circumvention.

1) Copyrighted works exist. 2) Technological measures that control access to copyrighted works exist. 3) Circumvention of those technological measures exist. 4) Prohibitions against those circumventions exist. 5) Certain classes of works that are exempt from those prohibitions may exist.

1) Manuscripts. 2) Books. 3) Photocopiers. 4) "Fair use". 5) Research.

Thus I contend that any class of work that constitutes Research should be considered a class of work that should be considered an exemption to the DMCA. I further define Research as that class of work used to comprehend or understand a copyrighted item without the intention of distributing a full and complete copy of the copyrighted item.

See a nice example below. Understand?