Changes To The DMCA Good For Cellphone Users And Gamers

WingaWinga MrSouth Africa Icrontian
edited November 2006 in Science & Tech
The Library of Congress has made several changes to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act allowing amongst other things, legal "cracks" to cell phone software and older non-supported games.

With number portability possible in the U.S. cell phone users are freely allowed to switch to whichever carrier they choose and keep their same number. Taking your handset with you however, is a totally different issue. Many cell phone carriers “lock” their phones specifically to their network. This means that phones cannot be freely used between networks.
The U.S. Copyright Office has effectively changed that by making it legal for cell phone users to break the software locks that cell phone carriers place in their phones. This change does not however prevent carriers from still locking their phones.

Further changes to the law now allows for gaming software to be cracked that no longer have the original machines available that are required to run them. This effectively validates the use of select emulators.

Other changes made in the act include exemptions that allow film professors to copy sections from DVD's for educational compilations and allow for blind people to use special software to read copy-protected electronic books.
I am very encouraged by the fact that the Copyright Office is willing to recognize exemptions for archivists, cell phone recyclers and computer security experts," said Fred von Lohmann, an attorney with the civil-liberties group Electronic Frontier Foundation. "Frankly I'm surprised and pleased they were granted.
These laws come into effect November 27 and are only valid for 3 years.

Source: Daily Tech

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