In the News

["Neal Pomea" <npomea@xxxxxxxx>]

Congress to take on spam, copyright
By Declan McCullagh, CNet News, January 8, 2003
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-979623.html

"One issue that is sure to remain a flash point this session will be the
1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which has been the focus
of intense scrutiny and a number of lawsuits. Beloved by the
entertainment industry, the DMCA broadly prohibits bypassing the kind of
copy-protection technology used in DVDs, computer software and
electronic books. 

On Tuesday, Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., and three other legislators
reintroduced their bill from last year that would defang the DMCA. Their
proposal, called the Digital Media Consumers'Rights Act, would let
Americans bypass copyright-protection schemes for legitimate "fair
use"purposes."

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Same old song, different meaning for P2P
By John Borland, CNet News, January 7, 2003
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-979532.html

"A difference between American and European copyright law threatens to
carve out a free-swapping zone for popular decades-old music, hampering
record companies' antipiracy efforts online." 
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Canadian Author Challenges Peter Pan Copyright
By Reuters News Service, New York Times, January 6, 2003
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/arts/entertainment-media-peterpan.html

"SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Peter Pan has flown into federal court in a 
copyright lawsuit over whether the rights to the legendary boy who vowed
never to grow up have moved from Neverland to the public domain after
more than a century."

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Norwegian Teenager Found Not Guilty in DVD Piracy Case
By Reuters News Service, January 6, 2003
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=2001671

"A Norwegian teenager was cleared of DVD piracy charges in a landmark
trial brought on behalf of major Hollywood studios. The Oslo court said
Jon Johansen, known in Norway as "DVD Jon," had not broken the law when
he helped unlock a code and distribute a computer program enabling
unauthorized copying of DVD movies."

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Supreme Court Backs off DVD Case
By Declan McCullough, CNet News, January 3, 2003
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-979197.html

"The U.S. Supreme Court has bowed out of a long-running dispute over a
DVD descrambling utility, dealing a preliminary defeat to Hollywood
studios and electronics makers."
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