Library of Congress denies request for fair use exemptions.

Scarlet Pruitt, IDG News Service
Wednesday, October 29, 2003

In a move deemed by some as a blow to consumers, the U.S. Librarian of
Congress denied requests for exceptions to digital copyright law Tuesday
that would
allow users greater flexibility with their media, such as
fast-forwarding through currently unskippable DVD commercials.

The Librarian did grant other exceptions sought under the 1998
Digital Millennium Copyright Act,
but the request for "fair use" exceptions were largely denied, according
to San Francisco-based privacy group the Electronic Frontier Foundation,
which
lobbied for the changes.

In a statement released Tuesday, EFF Staff Attorney Gwen Hinze said the
EFF was disappointed that the Librarian of Congress did not realize the
impact the
law is having on consumers' ability to "make reasonable uses" of the
digital media they've purchased.

Fair Use

Consumer and civil liberty groups have long been
rallying for changes
to the DMCA, which they say curbs users' fair use rights to access,
play, and move digital media that they own.

The law prohibits circumventing digital copyright protections, which
media companies often include to prevent copyright infringement.
However, opponents
to the DMCA claim that the protections
go too far,
preventing users from, for example, playing CDs that they have purchased
on more than one device, or from sharing DVDs and CDs with friends and
family.

The EFF and others sought exception to the law that prohibits playing
copy-protected audio CDs that prevent playback on some devices, viewing
foreign-region
coded DVDs on U.S. players, fast-forwarding through unskippable DVD
commercials, and playing public-domain movies on DVDs. All of these
requests were denied.

Exceptions Allowed

The Librarian did allow exceptions in four cases: for decoding lists of
Web pages or directories blocked by Internet filtering software,
accessing e-books
for which the publisher has disabled the read-aloud function,
circumventing obsolete digital rights management devices that prevent
access due to malfunction,
and accessing computer programs and video games distributed in an
obsolete format.

In a statement, the Librarian of Congress said that the decision "is not
a broad evaluation of the successes or failures of the DMCA. The purpose
of the
proceeding is to determine whether current technologies that control
access to copyrighted works are diminishing the ability of individuals
to use works
in lawful, noninfringing ways."

The approved exemptions expire after three years, and then proponents
must argue and win their case again with the Office of the Librarian of
Congress.

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