[mythtv-users] Odds of Linux CableCARD support?

[Gabe Rubin]

On 5/9/06, R. G. Newbury <newbury at mandamus.org> wrote:
>
>
> To my knowledge no case has actually determined that using the decss
> code is illegal. The New York case (Goldberg?..and Jon Johannson), as I
> understand it, never got that far as Goldberg got swatted for breach of
> an injunction prohibiting him from publishing the code.



The Corely case in the Ninth Circuit did address the DMCA anti-circumvention
issue.  The defendant used reverse engineering for interoperable systems as
a DMCA defense.  The court was unconvinced that this was the true purpose
and instead ruled the deCSS main purpose was to make unauthorized copies of
DVDs.  That was where the liability was.  I have not looked at this case in
a few years, so I forget some of the specifics, but we are talking about 2
different cases it would appear.

And of course, the DMCA would not restrict a Canadian resident from
> conducting a reverse engineering exercise on that code and hardware, as
> we are not subject to the DMCA.


Indeed, a canadian would not be prohibited from reverse engineering by the
DMCA.


 Then the question becomes whether a
> harware card, constructed by reverse-engineering can legally be sold
> into the US. Assuming that the cable cards are not being used to pirate
> a signal, but are for a legally licenced service, I would think that
> these cards would be legal. (And that piece of advice is worth exactly
> what you have paid for it: nothing!)


If the product decrypts something without the authorization of the copyright
holder, it violates the DMCA.  While there are exceptions, this likely would
not fall into those Section 1201 exemptions.  Again, see the Corely case as
this is very analogous.  It is also illegal to "traffic" in these devices,
so the sale of these unautorized cable card readers would be illegal as well
their use to decrypt a tv signal.

Essentially, you don't have a fair use right to violate the DMCA.  That is
why it is illegal to use deCSS to backup a DVD, even if it is just for
back-up archival purposes or some other method that would otherwise be
permissible via fair use.  Look at the 321 Copy case (forgot the actual name
of the case or parties, but involved a defendant who sold software to make
"backup" copies of DVDs).

Essentially, unless cable labs permits it, Congress changes the laws, or the
Library of Congress adds a 1201 exception in its ongoing review, this will
not be allowed to be developed or sold within the US.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://mythtv.org/pipermail/mythtv-users/attachments/20060509/bd05965e/attachment.htm