It looks like the MPAA has continued to make itself look worse and worse with a new lawsuit against RealNetworks (yes, the semi-dead company previously known for Real Arcade and Real Player, both media players that died off in the early ’00s) , where the MPAA alleges that RealNetworks’ program RealDVD, a program that allows users to make copies of thier DVDs on their computer, is a violation of the DMCA Anticurcumvention Laws and, thus, supports piracy. Talk about beating a dead horse.
So, for those of you who are uninitiated, here’s the Cliff’s Notes version of the whole MPAA/RIAA scenario: The MPAA (the Motion Picture Association of America) is a group that represents a large percentage of the entire movie industry- Disney, Paramount, Columbia, etc. The MPAA has been increasingly worried about Internet-based piracy (generally using BitTorrent networks), and basically has put themselves in the position of launching lawsuits against anyone who so much as blinks at the idea of copying movies. Unfortunately, this kind of patent paranoia has extended far beyond the realm of actual movie piracy, and now generally involves threatening people who even consider copying movies they own themselves- and that’s where the whole RealNetworks lawsuit gets started.
The main issue here functions around the term “fair use“- and the definitions thereof. Litigators on the side of RealNetworks are arguing that the Fair Use extends to a single person being able to copy a movie on their own for their own purposes- that is to say, that some theoretical Joe Public could copy all of his DVDs to a massive harddrive, put the DVDs in the attic, and watch the DVDs on his computer whenever he felt like it. Real claims that this is backed up by the fact that the DRM (Digital Rights Management) of the discs (which prevents unauthorized use) is maintained along with adding a DRM-like system only allowing the owner to play said files, thus keeping in line with typical MPAA demands. The MPAA, on the other hand, argues that inherently by copying these DVDs at all (that is, to rip them to your hard drive at all) requires the circumvention of the DRM of DVDs in the first place, and thus it is a clear violation of the DMCA Anticircumvention law.
My thoughts?
First off, it is my opinion that cases like this generally show the outlay of the MPAA perspective on the Piracy issue. Clearly, this is not an issue of the actual copies themselves- rather, the MPAA is basically messing around on a technicality, not addressing the core issue here as was seen with the deCSS case. Honestly, the issue here is that the MPAA is concerned not only with control of the movies themselves (that is, making sure you don’t see them without paying for them), but also the method in which you see them- be it seeing them on DVD, through a movie theater, or later, through a Cable TV network. By monopolizing the methodology in which these movies are distributed, these companies are able to maintain even the most archaic systems despite consumer tastes, creating what can only be described as a monopoly of method.
Of course, one can see why the MPAA would want to do this. Directors and actors are not the only people who profit from the sales of movies- everyone, from the makers of the DVDs to the graphic designers of the DVD menus, makes a profit. This obviously plays a factor in the price of these movies, as the movies themselves carry along the charges for everyone- from the lowliest sound tech to the guy who made the plastic DVD box. To allow the average consumer free economic control over what he purchases would be to circumvent these people, and to essentially choose the easiest, (arguably) most logical solution- buying online, or through a distribution service like iTunes.
I’m not saying that everyone would buy from iTunes if the MPAA didn’t have a lock grip on the scenario, but it is very clear that there is a degree of artificial inflation in the movie industry. Companies like the MPAA have never had to really deal with such an empowering of their own customers- and where they formerly held an incredible amount of control over their consumer base, they now have a proverbial rebellious teen. The MPAA, rather than trying to meet this demand by adopting new technology or trying to be more flexible (except these toe-in-the-water sort of experiments with digital distrobution on iTunes and Hulu), seems much more content to sue the pants off anyone who raises an eyebrow at their practices, trying, much like an old politician, to return things to the “way they were”.
The MPAA will very clearly win this case- they have much more of a legal precedent through the DMCA, despite the fact that RealNetworks is probably ethically/logically more correct. Unfortunately for the MPAA, this kind of lawsuit isn’t going to stop pirates, nor legitimate customers who want to copy DVDs, whatsoever. Until the MPAA is willing to meet the growing tech world at a comprimise, they will continue to have to run around suing everyone who looks suspicious as the control they so firmly grasp slips through their fingers. Either way, it’s going to be one bumpy ride.
Tags: copyright law, mpaa, piracy, realnetworks
