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Quote: The Library of Congress' latest DMCA fair use exemptions could spur carrier and phone manufacturer litigation and frustration.
What just happened here? I went into a 3 hour meeting today and when I emerged, the copyright landscape had inexorably shifted: The Library of Congress had made some sweeping, in-line changes to one of U.S.'s most powerful pieces of copyright law: the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Black is white, wrong is right, day is night (okay, maybe that last one is taking the metaphor too far).
Still, as of this moment, it's now OK to jailbreak your iPhone (and to install unapproved software on any other cell phone you might own). In other words, if you want to make your iPhone do something Apple doesn't want it to do (by installing unapproved software), you're within your rights.
The Library of Congress' statement regarding the list of exemptions is fairly stark. Here's the portion on "jailbreaking":
"Computer programs that enable wireless telephone handsets to execute software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications, when they have been lawfully obtained, with computer programs on the telephone handset."
The important part is this "where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications." So if anyone can prove that their jailbreaking is only being done to make sure the app can function with, say, another app or service outside the phone, they're operating within the letter, if not the intent, of the law.
The Library of Congress also took this opportunity to reiterate, and update, a 2006 (pre iPhone) exemption that makes it OK by them (and just fine in the eyes of fair use) to allow you to unlock phones from their exclusive carriers. Here's what's exempt:
"Computer programs, in the form of firmware or software, that enable used wireless telephone handsets to connect to a wireless telecommunications network, when circumvention is initiated by the owner of the copy of the computer program solely in order to connect to a wireless telecommunications network and access to the network is authorized by the operator of the network."
To be clear, the Library of Congress is exempting these activities, but in no way compelling Apple, AT&T or anyone else to accept them. However, these government –sanctioned exemptions could give consumers and companies cover to go after Apple, AT&T and others when they feel responses to jail-breaking activities are in some way harming them or their businesses.
Imagine if all the suddenly legitimized jail-breaking services band together to create a business organization. They could sue Apple and AT&T, claiming the companies are undermining their ability to conduct business.
With the full force of the U.S. government behind your jail breaking actions – what I'd like to start calling the "Freedom of Phone Act"— you might be able to, perhaps, sue Apple when an iOS update makes your phone inoperable ("bricks it") because you jailbroke it to run, say, on a network other than AT&T or found an app that lets you make not just Skype calls, but Skype video calls.
Mobile phone expert Sascha Segan, by the way, tells me that it isn't policy for Apple to brick phones, but I have heard that it does happen, and people likely feel harmed.
Apple can't be happy about this. Chief executive Steve Jobs loves control. This just pulled him out of the driver's seat, and put developers and users back in.
Reading the Library of Congress statement, it's clear there was a period of discovery, including hearings. Surely manufacturers like Apple and carriers like AT&T were there. How did this get by them without some sort of publicized outcry before the announcement of the exemptions? For all I know, phone manufacturers and service providers did put out a press release decrying the possible inclusion of these exemptions in the DMCA. If they did, they were likely ignored, since no one feels sorry for the big, bad manufacturers and service providers.
The Library of Congress, by the way, also got behind one or two other seemingly copyright-infringing activities, including decrypting DVD video for use "in non commercial" or "educational" videos. That's interesting and nice for people who still care about the future of DVDs, but with more and more people streaming videos, it seems like the Library of Congress is a good four years behind the technology curve. Its next DMCA insertion should address decrypting and reusing streaming video.
A mix of the old, new and adjusted, these Library of Congress changes to the DCMA may help keep the law current, but they also appear to lean heavily in favor of consumers, without much concern for the battles manufacturers and service providers might face. Perhaps the possible proliferation of lawsuits from those who think jail-breaking preventions have harmed them is not the Library of Congress' concern, but if that litigation because a millstone around, say, Apple and AT&T's necks, it could become a concern for consumers.
That's apples face.
-------------------- "Je pense, donc je suis (I am thinking, therefore I am)." -Rene Descartes
and if they update the OS and your itouch/iphone fucks up then you are allowed to take it to them for a fix?
-------------------- niteowl said: See, that term pedo gets thrown around a lot.
Is a 16 year old guy having sex w/a 16 year old girl a pedophile?
If not, then how is a 30 year old considered a pedophile for doing the same thing?
I think y'all need to look up the definition for pedophile.
Quote: still beLIEve said: and if they update the OS and your itouch/iphone fucks up then you are allowed to take it to them for a fix?
They said if you jailbreak it, it will void warranty according to apple. And like you said all they have to do is keep updating the bios to mess with the people doing it. Can you shut off the auto updating feature in one?
-------------------- Just smoke a bowl and get over your self We are human beings first everything else is second
You can not hold anything I post against me for I am delusional
You all need to read this shit carefully. It is only legal to jailbreak/root your phone for the purposes of installing LEGAL software on the device. It also does not mean apple or any other handset provider needs to provide a rooted/jailbroken phone at time of purchase.
The only thing this does is prevent you from being sued by the OEM's for bypassing their phones software to install legal applications. It also does not protect you from voiding a warranty or service plan, so any damage done through the process is not covered if they can tell you altered their system.
-------------------- kickin-two-hundo said: you know what i did in english class? I came to class stoned out of my mind every day, i chugged vodka in the back of class, i put dead fish in the ceiling tiles. i put a gallon of old milk and orange juice in the file cabinet before winter vacation. i brought snakes in a tied up sweater and let them loose during class. i didnt go to school to learn, i went because i had to. i didnt care, and i didn't fucking listen to that stupid bitch. and i still don't fucking care. i tore the pages out of her books and burned them, and threw away all the books in the class, two books per day.
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i used to see macintosh on the back of computer games and not even relise
