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Originally Posted by Denbo
Actually he should sleep quite well because legally speaking he is not stealing. Installing ebooks from elsewhere is similar to jailbreaking your iPhone and installing apps from other app markets like Cydia.
The Copyright Office has already ruled on that decision. They stated quite clearly that jailbreaking doesn't violate the DCMA.
Amazon, like Apple, can void your warranty but they can't legally stop you from jailbreaking your device and installing whatever you want on it.
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Amazon can indeed legally stop a user from jailbreaking their Kindle. The federal government will not get involved but under the ToS it specifically states:
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This is an agreement between you and Amazon Digital Services, Inc. (with its affiliates, "Amazon" or "we"). Please read this Amazon.com Kindle License Agreement and Terms of Use, the Amazon.com privacy notice located at www.amazon.com/privacy and the other applicable rules, policies, and terms posted on the Amazon.com website or the Kindle Store (collectively, this "Agreement") before using the Kindle or any Reading Application or Digital Content. By using the Kindle, any Reading Application, or any Digital Content, you agree to be bound by the terms of this Agreement. If you do not accept the terms of this Agreement, then you may not use the Kindle, any Reading Application, any Digital Content, or the Service; and you may return the Kindle for a refund in accordance with the applicable return policy.
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If you do not agree to abide with the ToS
"you may not use the Kindle".
The same portion of the ToS that governs the removal of the ads also covers the issue of jailbreaking:
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No Reverse Engineering, Decompilation, Disassembly, or Circumvention. You may not modify, reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Kindle or the Software, whether in whole or in part, create any derivative works from or of the Software, or bypass, modify, defeat, or tamper with or circumvent any of the functions or protections of the Kindle or Software or any mechanisms operatively linked to the Software, for example, by augmenting or substituting any digital rights management functionality of the Kindle or Software.
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What are the implications of all this:
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Termination. Your rights under this Agreement will automatically terminate if you fail to comply with any term of this Agreement. In case of such termination, you must cease all use of the Software, and Amazon may immediately revoke your access to the Service or to Digital Content without refund of any fees. Amazon's failure to insist upon or enforce your strict compliance with this Agreement will not constitute a waiver of any of its rights.
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My contention is anyone who does any mods or loads any content they have not purchased through Amazon's Kindle Store or received from Amazon through their personal documents program is in violation of the ToS the same as one who removes the ads from a KSO device. Removal of the special offers is not any different than any of the other mods we make on "our" Kindles and those who do so should not be held up for any more contempt than the others.
The decision to violate the ToS agreement with Amazon is an issue between the individual and Amazon.
I am pretty sure there are a few here who have not violated the ToS in any way but most of us have.
Amazon can at their discretion brick any of their "mobile reading devices" if they decide to demand strict compliance with their ToS.
Let's let Amazon decide to enforce their agreement as they wish and stop attacking our friends online because we think they have broken the contract more than we have.