Kaleidescape Triumphant in Court Case, DVD Ripping Ruled Legal 213
Jim Buzbee writes "Ever wanted to rip all your DVDs to a big network server so that you could select and play them back to your TV? Up until now, manufacturers have been wary of building a device to allow this type of usage because they've been afraid a lawsuit. The DVD Copy Control Association had claimed this was contractually forbidden, but now
a judge says otherwise stating, 'nothing in the agreement prevents you from making copies of DVDs. Nothing requires that a DVD be present during playback.' Kaleidescape has finally won their long-standing lawsuit, a case we first talked about early in 2005."
iTunes ripping? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:RTFA... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Misleading Title (Score:1, Interesting)
No it's about licensing terms (Score:5, Interesting)
It's the fact that they are running officially licensed code from the CSS cartel to uncrypt the DVD prior of putting them on the server, and the CSS cartel sued them pretending that their license should be interpreted as "using the code to make DVD server isn't allowed". The whole suit was whether or not Kaleidoscope could be forbidden to do this based on the licensing term.
Result : No, they can't be stopped, because at the time of signing the licensing terme weren't clear enough to forbid the server.
This has nothing to do with DVD John's work. His work is his own code made to circumvent the CSS encryption (using the fact that the algorithm itself is piss-poor and only marginally better than a rot13). He is not using code from the CSS cartel and thus the interpretation of that code's license doesn't apply.
- Because it's a code done to grant users' access to content that they have legally bought, because it provides a solution in situation which lacks a viable option (like enables DVD playing on Linux and other systems, even if software is only produced for Windows & Mac) and because it's doesn't contain original code from the CSS cartel (no way. It doesn't to the same thing as the official code. DVD Jon's code brute-forces the decryption key using flaws in the CSS implementation), it is legal in most juridiction.
- In the USA, because of the DMCA and the fact that DVD Jon's code is used to circumvent the CSS encryption it is illegal, even if it the only solution for legally owned material on Linux and even if the CSS encryption is to flawed to be considered as an efficient encryption. Only some exception to the DMCA may be invoked (using DVD Jon's code to decrypt DVDs for school or using it once DVDs are deprecated)
The situation is different for HD-DVD and BlueRay Discs with the recent work of Muslix64. On that case, there's no problem with the code it self, its just a re-implementation of a publicly described algorithme (AACS decryption). The whole trick is to provide the actual keys needed to decrypt the data on websites or P2P networks. The code itself isn't illegal. The key sharing is what can be contested by the AACS makers.
Re:iTunes ripping? (Score:4, Interesting)
WE then leave a unlabeled CD with them with copies of DVD shrink and DVD decryptor and the web address to buy anyDVD and Fair Use Wizard.
What the customer does on their own is not or problem, we simply sold them a video playback server.
They want to make it easy for joe-blow to rip his own dvd's into the system. it aint gonna happen. Sony already screws with everything and the best kaladiescope server made cant cope with it, you still haveto rip to a PC with special software to get past some of the protections.
Re:Reasonable but... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Doesnt mean a thing thanks to the DMCA (Score:3, Interesting)
RIAA/MPAA can call off the dogs (Score:2, Interesting)