UPDATE: Government to accept changes to copyright law to make ripping of CDs and DVDs legal
Update 03.08.11
Rules outlawing the transfer of content from CDs or DVDs on to portable players and computers are to be scrapped by the Government.
Business secretary Vince Cable has today given the official response to the Hargreaves Review of UK copyright law (see original story below).
Mr Cable told the BBC that he hoped to add "more clarity" to the current copyright laws and confirmed that most private ripping of music and video would no longer be technically illegal.
One of the most significant recommendations that the government plans to implement is the legalisation of "format shifting" – where users rip (copy) content from CDs or DVDs for their own personal use.
"We are talking about big changes," says Mr Cable.
Legalising non-commercial copying for private use would bring the UK into line with many other nations and also meet the "reasonable expectations" of consumers, the Government believes.
The change would not make it legal to make copies and then share them online.
However, while it's easy to copy a CD, most DVDs and Blu-ray discs include copy protection, so it's harder to make copies. It will be interesting to see if the change in legislation forces the film studios to remove copy protection from DVDs/Blu-rays.
Given the response of the film industry so far, that seems unlikely. Lavinia Carey, director general of the British Video Association, says that allowing so-called format shifting would be "extremely damaging" and that "it’s for the rights owner to decide how to offer the [digital] copy".
Published 18.05.11
Business secretary Vince Cable is expected to give cabinet-level support to the proposals put forward in the Hargreaves report on intellectual property and copyright laws, which is published today.
Professor Ian Hargreaves's report calls for a loosening and simplification of some aspects of copyright law, a view held by Cable who will say that the current system has failed to "keep pace" with the fast-moving digital economy.
In particular, Hargreaves recommends changing the law to make it legal to copy CDs and DVDs to other digital devices such as MP3 players and computers.
The business secretary is expected to say that "the consequence of the ban on format-shifting [copying discs on to a computer or MP3 player] is simply to make it harder for a British entrepreneur to compete with technology developed in the US and other countries where there's no such ban."
In his 123-page report, Professor Hargreaves says: ""Could it be true that laws designed more than three centuries ago, with the express purpose of creating economic incentives for innovation by protecting creators' rights, are today obstructing innovation and economic growth? The short answer is: yes."
Hargreaves' recommendations include the formation of a Digital Copyright Exchange by the end of 2012 to act as a "one-stop shop" to make it easier to get clearance for the use of copyrighted content.
Published 17.05.11
We all do it – rip (copy) music on our CDs to digital devices such as MP3 players, computers and tablets. Yet strictly speaking doing so is illegal under UK law.
Now the Hargreaves report on intellectual property has recommended changing the law to allow "format shifting" from one digital device to another.
This would leave industry and the Government free to focus on tackling bigger issues such as web piracy.
The report's author, Professor Ian Hargreaves, chair of digital economy at the Cardiff School of Journalism, also suggests the establishment of a new intermediary agency that will act as a swift one-stop shop for clearing the use of copyright content.
The idea of the IP clearing house, or digital exchange – which would be run by rights holders representing sectors including the music, video game and film industries – is to make the UK "the best place in the world to do business in digital content", says Hargreaves.
Music and movie ripping legal in US
Other countries have already amended their copyright laws to make ripping of discs legal for personal use – most notably the US, where the Digital Millenium Copyright Act now has a 'fair use' clause that's enabled American consumers to make copies of CDs, DVDs and Blu-rays.
We'll keep you updated on how this story develops.
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Comments
I think this argument is laughable as how they can expect people to believe that its ok to rip a cd but not a dvd when they are bound by similar if not the same copyright laws.
I will admit though that the scaremongering and your breaking the law messages did work with me as there are just so many of them around.
But the system is flawed and I think these rules need to change as how it can be ok or perceived as ok for cd but not dvd is ridiculous….the cd giants bowed down in the might of the mp3 player makers a decade ago and yet we are still having the same arguments over DVD…is this because there is too much in the pot to potentially risk losing with a format shift on DVD?
If this is a solid argument then that in itself is out of order because “the man” already takes so much more from us in DVD and Blu-ray sales than it did cd’s so we should be able to make legitiment back up copies without worrying about getting sent down for it! It’s a farce!
I did bottle it in the end and outsourced my requirement EDITED BY MODS..
I think these laws have been reduced now or removed altogether for back up copies and I think that’s about time…
I currently run a Microsoft windows vista pc (I know poor me LOL) its an old one among others in the home but when I put a cd in this pc windows automatically asks me “would you like to rip this cd to hard drive”
With the mighty Microsoft and of course itunes doing similar things how can any be expected to know if they are breaking the law if these devices are able of doing this.
If its really a problem don’t make the bloomin kit with the capabilities of doing so…but then this would hamper further IT developments and so would never happen…
Change the laws then in that case and stop making us all feel like crooks when we’ve already paid the copyright to the owners for the physical form!!
At last, a step in the right direction, I can now look forward to playing my old cassette tapes again on my Sony Walkman, recorded from my LPs for my summer hols.......without fear......
Just to play Devil's advocate, it doesn't make sense to argue that the lack of enforcability (which is now a word if it was not before) of a law does not make it a bad law. Strictly speaking, many laws are unenforceable, we just hope people don't break them once they know the consequences.
"Whats the point in having music/video copyright laws which are totally unenforcable? Possibly millions of the U.K population rip cd/dvd's for personal use, or to swap with friends etc."
That's precisely why Hargreaves recommends changing the law.
Whats the point in having music/video copyright laws which are totally unenforcable? Possibly millions of the U.K population rip cd/dvd's for personal use, or to swap with friends etc.
Its similar to all this talk not being able to have free speech on social networks. Are they really going to prosecute over 100,000 people who already discussed that famous footballer. I dont think so.
It's legal for a US citizen to copy to an MP3 etc. So, if they come and visit the UK could they be arrested for it as they hold material illegally copied. Next point is: if you took all your CD's on holiday to the US and copied them there, legally, to your mp3 player would you be done on your return? If the person held dual citizenship how would that work?
"This would leave industry and the Government free to focus on tackling bigger issues such as web piracy."
They're hardly busy taking care of rippers of private CD collections as it is.