RIAA policy statement on Boucher/Doolittle fair-use bill

[SlyckTom]

RIAA policy statement on Boucher/Doolittle fair-use bill

H.R. 1201 would repeal the DMCA and legalize hacking. It would reverse the Supreme Court’s decision in Grokster and allow electronics companies to induce others to break the law for their own profit. And it would eliminate new lower-priced digital options for consumers in the marketplace.

The DMCA has enabled consumers to enjoy creative works through popular new technologies. The DVD, iPod and the iTunes Music Store can all be traced to the DMCA. Online games, on-demand movies, e-books, online libraries, and many other services are coming to market because of a secure environment rooted in the DMCA’s protections.

Proponents of H.R. 1201 claim it legalizes hacking only for “non-infringing” uses. But as Congress recognized when it enacted the DMCA, the difference between hacking done for non-infringing purposes and hacking done to steal is impossible to determine and enforce. That’s why Congress created a review process that takes place every three years to determine whether fair uses of copyrighted works are in peril – and why Congress gave the power to the Librarian of Congress to take away DMCA protections in cases where fair use is in danger.

With billions of copyrighted works still illegally trafficked each month on illegal Internet services, Congress should be looking for ways to limit piracy, not facilitate it by undermining existing protections that spur investment in digital content delivery and bring consumers more choices.