DMCA
Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Since they were enacted in 1998, the "anti-circumvention" provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA") have not been used as Congress envisioned. Congress meant to stop copyright pirates from defeating DRM restrictions (aka content or copy protections) added to copyrighted works and to ban the "black box" devices intended for that purpose.
In practice, the DMCA and DRM have done nothing to stop "Internet piracy." Yet the DMCA has become a serious threat that jeopardizes fair use, impedes competition and innovation, chills free expression and scientific research, and interferes with computer intrusion laws. If you circumvent DRM locks for noninfringing fair uses or create the tools to do so, you might be on the receiving end of a lawsuit.
EFF has fought hard against the DMCA in the courts, Congress, and other forums. Learn more through the links below, and take action now to support DMCA reform.
DMCA Cases
- Marvel v. NCSoft
- Blizzard v. BNETD
- RealNetworks v. DVD-CCA (RealDVD case)On September 30, 2008, the day Real was to formally launch its RealDVD product, the motion picture studios filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles and asked for a temporary restraining order (TRO) to block the launch. The same day, RealNetworks filed a lawsuit in San Francisco asking the court to declare that distribution of RealDVD is lawful.
- Chamber of Commerce v. Servin
- RIAA v. Charter Communications Archive
- StorageTek v. Custom Hardware
- Lexmark v. Static Control Case Archive
- Macrovision v. SimaIn 2005, Macrovision sued Sima to block the sale of the Sima CopyThis! (CT-1, CT-Q1, CT-100, CT-2, CT-200) and GoDVD (SCC, and SCC-2) products, which are designed to digitize analog video, such as the analog video outputs of DVD players and analog VCRs. The Macrovision Analog Copy Protection (ACP) signals often embedded in these analog outputs, however, do not survive the digitizing process, and therefore are not embedded in the outputs of the Sima devices. Macrovision argued that this violates both Macrovision's patents and the DMCA's prohibition on circumvention.
In The News
- GUARDIAN UK | October 15, 2009 Texas Instruments: Don't hack your calculators, or else
- WALL STREET JOURNAL | November 16, 2009 These Hobbyists Add to Calculators, Multiplying Their Fun
- MACNEWSWORLD | October 14, 2009 Apple Tweaks iPhone 3GS to Lock Out Jailbreakers
Other Resources
- August 14, 2009 Canada Action Alert: Speak Out on the Future of Digital Copyright
- A Guide to YouTube Removals
- January 15, 2009 Free Your Phone
Related Issues
- DMCA RulemakingEvery three years, the U.S. Copyright Office convenes a rulemaking to consider granting exemptions to the DMCA's ban on circumvention to mitigate the harms the law has caused to legitimate, non-infringing uses of copyrighted materials.
- Digital VideoDigital Video Restrictions
Whitepapers
Deeplinks Posts
- November 13, 2009 More Freedom Necessary as Top Developers Abandon iPhone
- October 29, 2009 Hey, Texas Instruments -- Stop Digging Holes
- September 25, 2009 UPDATE: Hey, TI, Leave Those Kids Alone
Press Releases
- November 11, 2009 EFF to Represent Yes Men in Court Battle Over Chamber of Commerce Action
- October 27, 2009 'Hall of Shame' Calls Out Bogus Internet Censorship
- October 13, 2009 EFF Warns Texas Instruments to Stop Harassing Calculator Hobbyists
