Yesterday, Rep. Zoe Logren (D-CA) introduced a bill in the House, the Digital Choice and Freedom Act, which is designed to restore the fair use rights repealed by the DMCA. Her bill would allow copying legally obtained digital content for personal back-ups and for use on different devices. It would free consumers to sell or loan their copies to anyone, just as they can with print media. It would also nullify non-negotiable shrinkwrap licensing terms and permit circumvention in pursuit of their fair use rights. Today, Rick Boucher (R-VA) will introduce his long-awaited bill to amend the DMCA and permit circumvention for all purposes except infringement. The two bills are independent but show a bipartisan willingness to reverse the damage caused by the DMCA and restore balance to U.S. copyright law. (PS: There are many stories on each bill. For coverage, start here.)
Posted by
Peter Suber at 10/03/2002 10:34:00 AM.
The open access movement:
Putting peer-reviewed scientific and scholarly literature
on the internet. Making it available free of charge and
free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.
Removing the barriers to serious research.
