Tomorrow, 12 May 2004, the Digital Media Consumers’ Rights Act (DMCRA), H.R. 107, finally gets a hearing in front of the Trade, Commerce, and Consumer Protection subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
The DMCRA is a legislative attempt by Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Virginia) and Rep. John Doolittle (R-California) to right the wrongs of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) which has done little or nothing to curb the “piracy problem.” The problems associated with the DMCA are most eloquently articulated in EFF’s “Unintended Consequences” report.
The DMCRA, if passed, will restore the balance in copyright law through two main provisions:
- Reaffirms fair use by removing the prohibition against technological circumvention of a copy protection scheme so long as such use does not infringe the copyright in the work. In short, moving the works on your DVDs to a computer hard disk for viewing in another room will be legal again.
- Reaffirms the “Betamax standard” by removing the prohibition against the manufacture, distribution, or use of a hardware or software device capable of enabling significant non-infringing use of a copyrighted work. In short, the technology industry will be able to develop non-infringing products without the oversight of the American entertainment cartel.
- Reaffirms the right to research by allowing researchers to investigate “scientific research into technological protection measures.” In short, engineers will be able to research copy protection methodologies and develop the tools they need to conduct such research.
- Requires the labeling of copy-protected audio CDs, allowing consumers to know that the disc they’re about to purchase may not work on their computer CD player