Dragaera

Artificial release dates and online publishing

Wed Dec 11 09:58:08 PST 2002

On Wed, Dec 11, 2002 at 08:39:25AM -0800, Nytemuse <nytemuse at auros.org> wrote:
> On Tue, 10 Dec 2002, Gametech wrote:
> > way. I won't hesitate to create backup copies, and I won't hesitate to loan
> > my dvd's out knowing I've got a back up if it gets detroyed lost or stolen,
> > I don't care it it's legal because if I have a disk get destroyed you think
> > I'm gonna get a replacement for it for free? (or even cost of manufacture)
> Actually, I think it might be legal...I'm not 100% sure this extends to
> DVDs, but I do recall hearing somewhere that it was legal to make a
> back-up copy of tapes and CDs *for personal use*.  What's not legal is
> distributing those copies to ppl who haven't bought the merchandise
> through the industry.

Copyright law (ASUI, IANAL) has provisions for personal use, 
including time-shifting (SC case law), backup copies, educational 
use, and so on.  I have always heard it expressed that backup 
copies are legal.

HOWEVER.

If you loan that DVD to a friend you have to loan or destroy your 
backups, too.

-- 
Matthew Hunter (matthew at infodancer.org)
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