Comments on: Australian copyright reform on the way

By: brainsnorkel.com » Australian Copyright Amendment Act

brainsnorkel.com » Australian Copyright Amendment Act — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 22:29:04 +0000

[...] In the end the new rights consumers receive are balanced by the addition of on-the-spot fines with strict criminal liability (no “I wasn’t aware” defence) seems to be the downside for consumers. I previously noted that I expect that copyright owners and distributors will increasingly employ copy protection (technological protection measures) to provide for ease of liability determination in an attempt to limit casual piracy and format shifting. [...]

By: Woggles

Woggles — Sun, 12 Nov 2006 00:20:53 +0000

I think that its all bullshit. COPYRIGHT is my god. I love it so much. Thanks and goodbye

By: The Pencil Guy » Archive » A review of what’s been posted

The Pencil Guy » Archive » A review of what’s been posted — Thu, 25 May 2006 15:42:24 +0000

[...] This ABC article makes the excellent point that the legal changes do nothing for new cultural forms like mashups, and plenty of bloggers have pointed out issues the AG has been too stupid to address, like the up-and-coming problem of DRM. Even Gizmodo and Boing Boing ran stories about how ridiculous these new laws are. [...]

By: Alastair

Alastair — Thu, 18 May 2006 22:38:13 +0000

I’m going to assume that removing PUOs from DVDs is a legitimate format-shift. If Phillip Ruddock wants me to sit through pages of legal mumbo jumbo he can fucking well arrest me.

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 18 May 2006 10:40:56 +0000

A very sticky wicket, this copyright law. I foresee recorders that make lots of copies of a television program on a single piece of media, and delete one copy of the recording every time it is watched.

Seriously though, the “Everyday consumers shouldn’t be treated like copyright pirates. Copyright pirates should be not treated like everyday consumers.” line is a bit odd, given that the goal of these amendments is to make Australia’s million plus copyright pirates into everyday consumers again.

By: Alan Green

Alan Green — Thu, 18 May 2006 04:58:45 +0000

These amendments do strike a good balance - a balance between the rights of intellectual property owners and the need for them to make a profit.

I find the new time-shifting laws particularly worthy of ridicule. Australians will now legally be able to use their VCR to time-shift programs, but they must erase the recording after it has been watched once. The vast majority of VCR owners will continue be criminals, with at least one favourite movie recorded off TV and tucked away to pull out on rainy days.