Quote:
Originally Posted by Harmon
Precisely, the DMCA facilitates the use of DRM to accomplish this.
Here's how I see it:
In the US, fair use is carved out from the ownership rights established in artistic works by the copyright law. In other words, fair use amounts to those rights which the copyright owner does not, in fact, own. Those fair use rights are owned by the public.
DRM prevents the public from exercising its fair use rights, because as a practical matter, the DMCA prevents anyone from acquiring the tools necessary to get around DRM in order to make fair use of the material involved.
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Speaking of which, looks like an example of this just happened. I read a story today about a US judge ruling against the RealDVD product (made by Real Networks) that allows a user to backup a copy of their physical DVDs for personal use. The judge specifically noted in her ruling that while it
is fair use for an individual to backup DVDs they own, the DMCA makes it illegal to distribute tools that allow individuals to do so.
The resulting effect is that in practical terms, fair use no longer exists.