Digital Access

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Issues > Digital Access

Issue:

How can access to digital media be encouraged while protecting the rights of the Copyright holders

During the last decade there has been an exponential increase in the peoples ability to access information via new technology, e.g.via the Internet, DVD's etc. At the same time there has also been an increase in the laws to control this access by the distribution owners.

The next few years will define how people can get at information and then the Legal, Judicial, and Technological frameworks will be established for the next decades. As discussed there are two opposing groups, those in favor of an OPEN access to information and those in favor of CONTROLLED access to the copyright material.

OPEN -- The Users would prefer that the access be totally open so that any use be available with no payment or restriction -- EFF

CONTROL -- The Distributors would prefer to control all access to the content so that any use of content, reception, recording, viewing, etc. is chargeable each reading and only as permitted by the distributors. -- MPAA and RIAA

Current "Digital Access" Issues:

Broadcast flag -- how can HDTV be protected against copyright violation (see questions to FCC)
Copyright -- How can the the Content providers be protected while preserving the Right to Free Use
Freedom to Access-- Should Electronic references, "http://" links be considered "Fair Use"
Internet Access -- How should we control the access and content on the Internet
Internet Radio -- How should the streaming Internet radio sited be charged and controlled.
Laws and Legal interaction -- List of pending laws and the interaction of US laws and Globalization
Spam -- How can we control un-requested E-mail while still preserving freedom of speach and commerce?

Currently technology generally supports open access while the laws are being written to limit and control the access. Under the current laws,

A programmer has been jail a programmer who "broke" the adobe encryption,
Links were removed to sites that discussed scientology, and to sites that linked to a LINUX DVD player, and
The code to play DVD on LINUX systems was declared a criminal.

There are 4? laws to increase the control of digital access as well as 3 opposing laws to require open access proposed for the next congress as well as a number of suits relative to digital access pending in the court.

Now is the time for all good persons to understand the actions that are being proposed so that they can assist in the setting of the balance between controlled and open access. If not now, then in a few years the balance will be set and anyone who disagrees with it will be fighting an up hill battle against the newly established status quo.

Note: Until WeMatter.com is more operational, I suggest that you Login to the following Internet sites to coordinate your activity:

Electronic Frontier Foundation Organization -- working to protect our fundamental rights regardless of technology
Motion Picture Association of America , and Recording Industry Association of America -- the voice and advocate of the American motion picture, home video and television industries, and the voice and advocate of the American recording industries, {Generally in favor of strong Copyright protection}

There are of course many other sites involved with this topic, See: Digital Access sites, but if one is to effect the Government, I suggest going to the above mentioned hub sites.

Ways that Digital Access can be open or controlled

Technological -- The software and hardware of the Internet, computers, and other devices, e.g. DVD players, etc., that access digital data may be implemented so as either to allow open access, e.g. Open Source general computers, and in fact to get around legal or other technological controls, e.g. by anonymous browses, or can be made to enforce limitations and controls on access, e.g. The Internet filters and the DVD Copy Protection and Encryption systems.
Regulatory -- The administrative branch of the government can establish regulations that require open access, such as the FCC did when it required multiple ownership of broadcast stations or change the regulations to control access, e.g. to require all broadcasters to support broadcast flags that
Legislative -- The laws, or treaties in the countries may be written to either permit Fair Use and open assess, as was originally in the copyright laws, or make access to the content illegal unless authorized by the distributor.
Judicial -- The Judges may, even if a law seems to justify either open or controlled access, declare that the law is inconsistent with the other laws of the land, the treaties, or any superseding constitution.

Areas that Digital content may be controlled -- There are a number of places that may be used to control access, each one of these is able to either permit or control the access and they are somewhat parallel to the various issues that are included in the general digital access issue set:

Source -- Generally it is accepted that a person who publishes copyright material for general access, e.g. an open site that contains Movies, etc., is in violation of the copyright laws. The new developments are that the distributors are attempting to control Peer to Peer P2P sites by intimidation, expensive nuisance suites or by direct interference with the sites operation and to be given a safe harbor against legal actions.

Channel -- The distributors are attempting to extend their legal control to the channels that may carry copyright material. They have asked the internet to filter out source sites that seemingly are violating sites as well as to remove links to sites that either contain illegal code or links to sites discuss matters that the copyright owner wishes to not be discussed and may be copyright. These controls on the channels may either be on the source channel, e.g. the ISP that connects the originating user to the Internet, the backbone channel that carries multiple steams, or the destination channel, e.g. the ISP that connects the destination user to the Internet

Destination -- Generally it is also accepted that the person who "downloads" the copyright material may be in violation of copyright laws, though in the past the distributors have mainly left the individual users alone and have gone after the pirate publishers and sometimes after the mass users. The new developments are that the distributes are also going after the individual users and requesting permission to interfere with the P2P access of these users as well as warning these users organizations that they must police their own users.

Content -- It has been accepted that the distributors can implement content protection systems, e.g. Digital Rights Management, to deter counterfeiting, or piracy, but only recently have the distributors been passing laws that make it illegal to manufacture hardware, use software, etc. that might not "honor" the encryption used to protect content.

General Internet Issue Sites

Congressional Internet Caucus Advisory Committee
Greplaw -- "Geeks, Laws, Everything in between" research program founded to explore cyberspace, share in its study, and help pioneer its development.
Internet Society a professional membership society for addressing issues that confront the future of the Internet
IT&Society -- WEB journal devoted to the scientific analysis of the social impact of information technology on society

[More...]

Representatives Pro/Con Digital Access

Columnists, Lawyers...

Benny Evangelista, Mailto Chronicle Staff Writer
Dan Gilmore Mailto San Jose Mercury -- analysis on the Silicon Valley technology and business revolution
Declan McCullagh Mailto CNET News.com, -- intersection between technology and politics

See: Other Issues re Digital Access

Will Canada's ISPs become spies? --Declan McCullagh C/Net August 27, 2002
Europeans push WIPO Broadcast Treaty to create "fixation rights" EFF Cosensive at Lawerpoint BLOG, August 27, 2002

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October 26, 2003 13:31