[Fsfe-france] Un sénateur (américain) se rebiffe contre le RIAA

[Antoine]

http://arstechnica.com/archive/news/1063819604.html


« Perhaps the EFF's petition against the RIAA is having an effect
already. Whether it is or not, Senator Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) has
apparently taken notice of the RIAA's unsavory legal tactics. (And guess
what? He does not like what he is seeing.) The Senator introduced
legislation on Tuesday that could throw a serious monkey wrench in the
music industry's plans to sue every file-sharing citizen out of
existence. The bill addresses two major issues in our digital world, the
first and foremost being "Privacy". From Wired.com:

        The legislation would require owners of digital media to file a
        John Doe lawsuit to obtain the identifying information of an
        Internet user, rather than simply requesting a subpoena.
        Currently, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act permits
        copyright holders to subpoena an Internet service provider for
        the name and address of a person they believe is violating a
        copyright. The one-page subpoena request can be issued by a
        court clerk and doesn't require a judge's signature.
        
        "There are no checks, no balances, and the alleged pirate has no
        opportunity to defend themselves," Brownback said when
        introducing the bill. "My colleagues, this issue is about
        privacy, not piracy. "This will provide immediate privacy
        protections to Internet subscribers by forcing their accusers to
        appear publicly in a court of law, where those with illicit
        intentions will not tread, and provides the accused with due
        process required to properly defend themselves."
        
The other topic that the bill addresses is Digital Rights Management
(DRM). And surprisingly, this proposed legislation appears designed to
keep the consumer protected and informed. (Wired):

        [T]he bill calls for a labeling system for all digital media
        protected by digital rights management, "so consumers will know
        what they are buying when they buy it," Brownback said. Digital
        rights management, also called DRM, refers to technology
        measures that control how digital content is used and accessed.
        The music industry has started selling copy-protected CDs
        without labeling the products as such, and some customers have
        had trouble playing these CDs on their computers. Plus,  music
        lovers have been unable to convert these music files to MP3s, a
        legal action, Brownback said.
        
[editor's emphasis] It is a great thing to see that a Senator
understands that making your own MP3s for personal use is a perfectly
legal action and the ability to do so should not be unduly restricted.
The Senate commerce committee is holding a hearing today on "Consumer
Privacy and Government Technology Mandates in the Digital Media
Marketplace". The panel will consist of members from the RIAA, MPAA,
Verizon, SBC, Consumers Union, and Dr. Edward Felton of Princeton
University. (The very same man who accepted the public challenge to
break the security system of the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI)
and was then silenced by the RIAA through the use of the DMCA.)
Hopefully something good will come out of this hearing. »