The Librarian of Congress determined that the following four classes of works are exempt from the DMCA prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works:
(1) Compilations consisting of lists of Internet locations blocked by commercially marketed filtering software applications that are intended to prevent access to domains, websites or portions of websites, but not including lists of Internet locations blocked by software applications that operate exclusively to protect against damage to a computer or computer network or lists of Internet locations blocked by software applications that operate exclusively to prevent receipt of email.
(2) Computer programs protected by dongles that prevent access due to malfunction or damage and which are obsolete.
(3) Computer programs and video games distributed in formats that have become obsolete and which require the original media or hardware as a condition of access. A format shall be considered obsolete if the machine or system necessary to render perceptible a work stored in that format is no longer manufactured or is no longer reasonably available in the commercial marketplace.
(4) Literary works distributed in ebook format when all existing ebook editions of the work (including digital text editions made available by authorized entities) contain access controls that prevent the enabling of the ebook’s read-aloud function and that prevent the enabling of screen readers to render the text into a specialized format.
This rule will be in effect from October 28, 2003 until October 27, 2006.
Also: Statement of the Librarian of Congress on the Anticircumvention Rulemaking, Determination of the Librarian of Congress and Text of the Regulation, The Recommendation of the Register of Copyrights
Coverage and Analysis:
Ernest Miller has the motherlode of links.
Edward Felten: “It is abundantly clear by now that the DMCA has had a chilling effect on legitimate research related to access control technologies.”
Derek Slater: “Not a whole lot of change.”
bIPlog: Copyright Office Releases DMCA Exemption Hearing Ruling
EFF: Librarian of Congress Fails Public Interest in Copyright Regulation. “The Librarian of Congress today continued to disregard consumers’ rights and denied exemptions to copyright law related to consumers’ use of CDs and DVDs that they legally purchase.”
Seth Finkelstein: DMCA censorware exemption win! How sweet it is!
IP Justice: US Copyright Office DMCA Ruling Issued Consumers Still Unable to Make Lawful Use of Digital Media.
Wired News: New Ways to Skirt DMCA … Legally!
