Looks like it illegal that I make a personal copy of my personal, purchased DVDs for my personal use under the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) pushed by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). However, it is ok for the MPAA to make copies even if they promised in writing not to make copies of that specific documentary?
Quoted from the MPAA web site:
“Manufacturing, selling, distributing or making copies of motion pictures without the consent of the copyright owners is illegal,” the MPAA’s website says. “Movie pirates are thieves, plain and simple…. ALL forms of piracy are illegal and carry serious legal consequences.”
I really think that recording industry has gone way too far with trying to limit the “Fair Use” of copyright material and I hope that this event will start unraveling the trend.
More information here at the LA Times.
Another point to make on this article is that the MPAA believes it is okay for the recording industry to use internet service providers to snoop people’s personal download information and gather “evidence” while a guy is not allowed to drive around in a car and see what their employees are doing in public?
