tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22351669.post1846346323089314477..comments2023-11-01T06:23:51.952-04:00Comments on Copyright Litigation Blog: Copyright Law: Donglegate - Fifth Circuit Shreds DMCA, Tosses Damages ExpertsRay Dowdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07527134078878618834noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22351669.post-13230090154300803562010-07-28T17:49:41.807-04:002010-07-28T17:49:41.807-04:00I think you're misreading the DMCA portion of ...I think you're misreading the DMCA portion of the case, the meat of which is here:<br /><i>The owner’s technological measure must protect the copyrighted material against an<br />infringement of a right that the Copyright Act protects, not from mere use or viewing.</i><br /><br />So, if you have a technological measure that prevented people from doing X, the first question is "does X constitute copyright infringement"? If the answer is "no," then the measure can be cracked without violation section 1201(a).<br /><br />At an extreme, suppose the following system: I distribute pre-loaded ebook readers with 1000s of books, each of which is protected by a software key, and make money by selling the keys. You figure out a way to work around the keys and unlock each of the books on your device, reading them all. Reading a book is not a copyright violation -- no copy, no derivative work, no public performance, etc... -- therefore, the DMCA is unaffected.<br /><br />That doesn't leave me without remedies -- I probably have good claims for breach of contract or unjust enrichment. I just can't go after you for a DMCA violation. If I'm really worried about it, maybe I should use stronger encryption.Christopher Fulmerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16543538534660568711noreply@blogger.com