RE: [dvd-discuss] UK ruling against Playstation mods

[Richard Hartman <hartman(at)onetouch.com>]

What's this "Design's Copyright's and Patent's Act 1988" they mention?
Apparently whether something is "'specifically' designed to circumvent the
copy-protection mechanism" is an important aspect.  Is this act a proto-DMCA
from Britain?

-- 
-Richard M. Hartman
hartman@onetouch.com

186,000 mi./sec ... not just a good idea, it's the LAW!


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Sham Gardner [mailto:mail@risctaker.inka.de]
> Sent: Thursday, January 24, 2002 6:38 AM
> To: dvd-discuss@eon.law.harvard.edu
> Subject: [dvd-discuss] UK ruling against Playstation mods
> 
> 
> This isn't related to DVDs, but the cases seem quite similar. 
> I've just been
> informed of a decision by a UK court against a manufacturer 
> of Playstation
> modification circuits. There is a summary at
> http://www.channeltechnology.com/ however, I've been unable 
> to verify this
> elsewhere. This may not bode well for DecSS mirrors hosted in the UK.
> 
> -- 
> http://sites.inka.de/risctaker/DeCSS/
> 
> "DVDCCA's statutory right to protect its economically 
> valuable trade secret
> is not an interest that is 'more fundamental' than the First 
> Amendment right
> to freedom of speech [...] Accordingly, we are compelled to 
> reverse the
> preliminary injunction." (California Appeals Court)
>