Autopenguin used our news submit to tell us "Some good news here, but also a bit of a puzzling contradiction. If you copy a protected CD in Australia, for example, you"ll be perfectly entitled to under fair-use laws, but you"ll also be sharing a jail cell with murderers and child molesters for two years for breaking the protection in the first place. Hopefully fair-use laws will be passed in Australia that take the need to circumvent copy protection into account. And as for the new jail sentences imposed under the FTA, does anyone REALLY think someone who copies a DVD or CD should be thrown in jail? What does it achieve, aside from destroying their lives in the name of corporate greed? Ah well, at least the poor sods who get jailed will make some decent criminal contacts in there so they can do some REAL crime once they get out..."
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The prospect of a "fair use" clause moved a step closer yesterday when the Federal Government announced a wide-ranging review of copyright laws."There"s a reasonable argument for putting forward the opinion that when someone has bought something in one format and has acquired the copyright for it in that particular format then there is a fair use for them to take it to another format. I think it"s a strong argument," Mr Ruddock said. Australian law prohibits the copying of any material unless it is for academic research or a review. |
This is very good news indeed and is definately a step in the right direction for our friends Down Under. Without the freedom to use purchased content in a variety of ways, there is a risk of losing out on technology to display or listen to such materials in new and convenient forms. Make sure to check out the whole story over at The Age. Thanks for the heads up and the comments Autopenguin!
Source: The Age
