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Geek Culture / libdvdcss legality

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data 98junkiee
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Posted: 29th Apr 2012 02:31
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I'm a Linux user so in order to playback DVDs on my pc I require the use of 'libdvdcss'. I was wondering as to the legality of this in the UK, I am aware that the law was changed a couple of years ago to exempt the process of ripping content for personal use as a form of fair use (this same fair use right applies in the US as far as I am aware) In the US however using libdvdcss is technically illegal whether enforced or not, this seems clear but what doesn't seem clear is the legal status of this in the UK. I have read in various places that in most of Europe use of libdvdcss is legal as a result of competition laws but I am unaware as to weather this covers the UK so I was wondering if anyone can shed any light on this.
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data 98junkiee
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Posted: 29th Apr 2012 02:33 Edited at: 29th Apr 2012 14:59
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Found this on the VideoLan website


source: http://www.videolan.org/legal.html
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data 98junkiee
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Posted: 29th Apr 2012 14:59 Edited at: 29th Apr 2012 15:01
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Have just done a bit of digging and still none the wiser, Im probably safe to assume at worst that it's the same deal as videotaping TV programmes was in the 80's and 90's, or ripping CD's for personal use was before the legal amendments (that while it may be technically illegal or not its still common sense that its not an enforceable or reasonable law and as a result there is no real issue with the law getting broken. Still unfortunately it might make it illegal for DRM contravention methods to be made in the UK.
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nonZero
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Posted: 29th Apr 2012 22:05
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It is considered illegal to "defeat copy-protection mechanisms" - that includes unauthorised decrypting of a DVD (?even for playback by my understanding?). England is very strict about copyright so in short, it is technically illegal to use it - law may have changed, my knowledge base is a little dated. However, nobody has ever been arrested - so far as I know - for using libdvdcss.

In any case, using it for yourself is not an issue of legality. To h3ll with legality coz I doubt a home user will end up with cops kicking the doors down while they're watching a DVD or "backing it up". It comes down to personal ethics, ie "Am I harming somebody or doing something wrong"? Short answer: No, not unless you make and distribute rips.

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data 98junkiee
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Posted: 29th Apr 2012 22:37
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Yeah I feel confident enough that this isn't a problem now. Hopefully I'll be able to say the same about blu-ray when I eventually get a drive.
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CoffeeGrunt
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Posted: 30th Apr 2012 00:13
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Quote: "England is very strict about copyright"


I know, none of us here prolithicly pirate music, do we?
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lazerus
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Posted: 30th Apr 2012 00:32
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Why bother wasting bandwidth?

http://grooveshark.com

Saved my life. Its like spotify without any adverts and completely online with radio stations ect. Its free to.

Portfolio; Arthiccup.com
Lazerus Reborn on Polycount and a few other places.
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data 98junkiee
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Posted: 30th Apr 2012 01:32
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In reality DRM only serves to limit what users who buy content legitimately can do with it since anyone who would pirate has the means to circumvent DRM in any form. There is a worrying tend in the fact that there is a massive push towards subscription based streaming detaching any sense of ownership at all, thankfully this has reversed in the music industry I hope it will eventually happen in the film industry but I wont hold my breath. DRM is only ever about restrictions not protection and I think the best thing is to strip DRM off any multimedia content you own before its no longer yours any more.
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nonZero
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Posted: 30th Apr 2012 22:09
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Quote: "
Quote: "England is very strict about copyright"

I know, none of us here prolithicly pirate music, do we?
"

lol, point well made
Seriously though, what I meant was England in relation to many other regions. In my country, piracy isn't taken very seriously. In fact up till a few years ago, there were loads of pirate vendors - even some game shops in respectable malls used to offer "regulars" pirated games. There still are many dealers in bootlegged movies around (although there aren't many pirate game dealers here these days). Then again, law and order in my country ain't exactly top notch to begin with.

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data 98junkiee
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Posted: 1st May 2012 19:20
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I don't think DRM has much if any impact on the level of piracy, like i say i think its about control, you can limit what the user can do with something theres more opportunity to profit from "additional features", you can limit what products the consumer can use your product with and you can charge for the DRM protection which content producers and hardware manufacturers are often forced into adding to their product by each other. There is no effective way to stop piracy and most attempts to do so stamp on freedoms, In fact many companies find that actually trusting their customers actually helps their business. DRM SUCKS
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nonZero
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Posted: 1st May 2012 21:29
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Quote: "...like i say i think its about control..."


Yeah, like region-locking. I worked for a video shop (actually two but we'll just discuss the one) which was importing legitimate rental copies however the local suppliers and distributors got together and attacked our franchise because we had DVDs ready for rent before the movies hit the big-screen (release dates on films vary around the world with South Africa usually being last on the list). Our franchise was forced to settle out of court and agree to the demands of the big corporates because the bad publicity of a trial would have harmed our customer base and reputation.

BTW: We were giving customers manufacturer override codes for their DVD players (some pricier brands are region locked) - in case anyone was wondering how we got around region-locking.

If corporations can't keep up, that's their problem and shouldn't be the customer's. But today the customer doesn't technically have the right to backup the data he paid for... And people wonder why a person goes to the shop, buys a game, gets home and then cracks it. Because it's sometimes easier than the registration process - and more private/less restrictive/etc.

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data 98junkiee
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Posted: 2nd May 2012 01:37
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God, don't get me started on region codes. I always use the manufacturer override codes to set the region to 0 on my DVD players, the manufacturers must not agree so they don't particularly try to hide them well (a quick Google search usually gives the result in the first few websites). I remember pretty much all my friends had chipped Playstation 1 consoles so they could play American imports which were shockingly cheaper than the PAL releases in the UK (although depending on your TV the game might be in black and white). Region locking as far as i know technically infringes on EU competition law but it seems its not enforced. I never understood the discriminatory pricing and release dates, it doesn't surprise me that it might be against EU law (it should be!)
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