A Copyfighter’s Musings

Another DRM scheme (inevitably) yields yet another evasion tool. Apparently, Engadget has verified that the BackupHDDVD utility unlocks AACS encrypted HD-DVD discs, allowing users to make copies of the data onto their computer. The utility was released via the doom9 messageboard, home to the FairUse4WM tool as well.

It’s unclear right now whether this break can be easily patched. Felten discusses AACS’ specs here, with links. If you follow the Engadget story to doom9, you can read about how the utility was created.
Blu-Ray discs also use AACS, along with BD+, which is explained by Felten here.

Filed by Derek Slater at 4:02 pm under Uncategorized
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EFF’s Fred von Lohmann, post-Grokster: “A variety of new digital technologies are advertised and promoted for uses that the technology vendors believe to be fair uses. For example, Time Trax promotes its technology for recording satellite radio, Mercora for recording music from webcasts, and Sling Media for transmitting your TiVo’d TV shows to yourself over the Internet….

“Is it inducement if you reasonably, but incorrectly, believed that the use for which you promoted your product was covered by fair use (or any other copyright exception)?”

The Federal Circuit, today (via Jason): “Grokster, thus, validates this court’s articulation of the state of mind requirement for inducement. See Manville, 917 F.2d at 544. In Manville, this court held that the ‘alleged infringer must be shown . . . to have knowingly induced infringement,’ 917 F.2d at 553, not merely knowingly induced the acts that constitute direct infringement. This court explained its ‘knowing’ requirement:

‘It must be established that the defendant possessed specific intent to encourage another’s infringement and not merely that the defendant had knowledge of the acts alleged to constitute inducement. The plaintiff has the burden of showing that the alleged infringer’s actions induced infringing acts and that he knew or should have known his actions would induce actual infringements.’”

Filed by Derek Slater at 12:56 am under Uncategorized
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Answer: probably not immediately, although some think it’s certainly on the way.

When WeedShare came out, major labels treated its model — paying ordinary fans for sharing music with other buyers — as a passing fad rather than a sign of things to come. They refused to license it, never giving it the fair shot it deserved.
Today, it’s increasingly impossible to ignore the potential business benefits of embracing taste sharing tools, among many other pathways to reach fans. The Zune’s sharing features may be incredibly limited, but it is yet another sign that relying on fans to help drive sales is getting a more serious look.

Filed by Derek Slater at 5:25 am under Uncategorized
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It was inevitable. In general, the rise of streaming radio led to tools like Stream Ripper. The rise of DRMed online music downloads led to tools like AnalogWhole, not to mention circumvention tools like FairUse4WM. And as Pandora rapidly grew in popularity, someone was going to come up with a tool like this to help users get more from the service.

Filed by Derek Slater at 5:10 am under Uncategorized
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