UK Thinking About Legalizing Private Copying Of CDs; Giving DRM-Free Content To Libraries

from the well,-it's-about-time dept

The really amazing thing about this story is that it's even taken this long for the discussion to get this far. In the US, it's legal for people to take a CD they own and make a personal copy of it (assuming the CD doesn't have DRM, at which point you run into problems with the DMCA anti-circumvention rules). However, in the UK and a few other places, music fans aren't so lucky. The very act of ripping your CD so you can listen to it on your iPod is illegal. Now, a think-tank is recommending that the laws be updated to allow personal copying -- which is perfectly reasonable. What's interesting, though, is that they note that allowing personal copying actually could benefit the recording industry's battle. They argue that in keeping private copying illegal (and, thus, making criminals out of a large percentage of the country), people are much less likely to respect any copyright law -- since they all get lumped into the ridiculous pile. One other interesting aspect of the report is that it takes on the debate concerning the right for libraries to archive content. In this case, it recommends that "the British Library should be given a DRM-free copy of any new digital work and that libraries should be able to take more than one copy of digital work." Given the earlier debate, somehow it seems unlikely the entertainment industry is going to agree to that one willingly.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  1. identicon
    Trouble Maker, 30 Oct 2006 @ 10:45am

    two cents worth

    I don't care, as long as the Industry is held responsible to replace my CD it fails to function.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    Geoff, 30 Oct 2006 @ 10:47am

    Those wacky brits

    Next thing you know those Brits are going to allow the women to vote or worse they might even banish slavery, although I doubt that one!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. icon
    chris (profile), 30 Oct 2006 @ 10:48am

    big surprise

    the brits invented copyright as a form of government censorship. now they are flirting with fair use for libraries and private use. maybe in another 500 years they will realize how much damage copyright does to the public good.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    zcat, 30 Oct 2006 @ 11:18am

    New Zealand has the same problem

    There was a move to have the law changed so you could legally rip your CD's but the local music industry fought it tooth and nail.

    Since there is basically no legal way in New Zealand to get mainstream music onto an iPod, and fairly limited options for WMA players, I just download all my music through emule. If the music industry is forcing me to break the law anyhow, I don't see why I should have to 1) pay them for it and 2) get an intentionally crippled product. Fsck them! I won't buy another CD until I can legally play them how I want, on my cheap generic mp3 player.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    Bob Jones, 30 Oct 2006 @ 3:04pm

    Re: big surprise

    I think you're being a little unfair, what right do we have to just take somebodys movie? Why shouldn't they be able to sell their own work?

    Look, I'm all for fair use with content I bought - but the idea that copyright should be outlawed is pathetic.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. identicon
    Herbie The Rabbit, 30 Nov 2006 @ 2:28pm

    Re: Those wacky brits

    "Next thing you know those Brits are going to allow the women to vote or worse they might even banish slavery, although I doubt that one!"

    Duh! I guess you are US

    Slavery:
    UK: In the United Kingdom, the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act was passed on March 25, 1807.
    USA: slavery was abolished with the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865

    Suffrage:
    UK: The Pitcairn Islands (UK) granted women's suffrage in 1838, British women over 30 had the vote in 1918, the rest followed in 1928
    USA: 1920

    There are some facts for ya!

    link to this | view in thread ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.