[NCLUG] Linux Community joint statement against DMCA

Wells wells at jymis.com
Wed Jul 25 07:48:28 MDT 2001


Here is an extract from the latest  EFF newsletter - Ian


Respected British Scientist Resigns from US-Based Conference-Planning
Committee

  Citing Fear of Prosecution under DMCA

   UK scientist & programmer Alan Cox, a key member of the USENIX Annual
   Linux Showcase (ALS) planning committee, has resigned in the wake of
   the arrest of DEFCON presenter Dmitry Sklyarov and legal threats
   against USENIX presenter Prof. Edward Felten & colleagues, under the
   questionably-constitutional US "Digital Millennium Copyright Act"
   (DMCA). Cox sent USENIX the following open letter of resignation:

     I hereby tender my resignation to the USENIX ALS committee.

     With the arrest of Dimitry Sklyarov it has become apparent that it
     is not safe for non-US software engineers to visit the United
     States. While he was undoubtedly chosen for political reasons as a
     Russian it is a good example for the US public that the risk
     extends arbitarily further.

     USENIX by its choice of a US location is encouraging other
     programmers, many from Eastern European states hated by the US
     government, to take the same risks. That is something I cannot
     morally be part of. Who will be the next conference speaker slammed
     into a US jail for years for committing no crime? Are USENIX
     prepared to take the chance it will be their speakers?

     Until the DMCA mess is resolved I would urge all non-US citizens to
     boycott conferences in the USA and all US conference bodies to hold
     their conferences elsehere.

     I appreciate that this problem is not of USENIX making, but it must
     be addressed.

     Alan Cox

   Similar resignations of non-US members of US conference- and other
   event-planning bodies are increasing, with many more expected. It is
   thus crystal clear that the DMCA is having one of the most palpable
   "chilling effects" in American history on perfectly legal expression.
   EFF remains very concerned about such "secondary effects" of this
   legislation, and is committed to seeing it undone.

   [Sources: Linux World News & NewsForge

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_______________________________________________


Linux Community Joint Statement Against DMCA:

  Digital Millennium Copyright Act Threatens Researchers

    Free Speech, Free Sklyarov

      A Community Declaration:

   Dmitry Sklyarov, a Russian academic, has been imprisoned after
   presenting a scientific paper at the DEF CON computer security
   conference. His talk covered the restriction mechanisms used to
   prevent people from reading electronic books. He was formally charged
   with distributing software that could be used to circumvent copy
   protection.
   [See press coverage]

   The Digital Millennium Copyright Act attacks freedom of speech and
   assembly and damages the economic health of the United States.

   Sklyarov was arrested by the FBI outside his hotel as he prepared to
   go to the airport. The arrest was instigated by Adobe Systems
   Corporation.

   It is ironic that a Russian national is being held without bail in the
   US for what is essentially a thoughtcrime. Through the passage of the
   DMCA we have criminalized speech and scientific research about the
   structure of computer programs as well as other simple acts such as
   reading of books and other media.

   The DMCA goes far beyond the need to protect from illegal copies of
   books and other media. Since it criminalizes not only the act of
   copying but even development and possession of programs which are
   capable of reading these media for legitimate use. For example, the
   DMCA criminalizes used book stores, in that the DMCA helps publishers
   lock up books so tight that the electronic analog of a used book store
   would be impossible.

   This is not the first time that DMCA has been used as a weapon against
   legitimate scientific research. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has
   brought suit on behalf of USENIX and Princeton Professor Edward Felten
   after the Professor and his research team were threatened with DMCA
   prosecution by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America).
   This threat was delivered after it became known that Professor Felten
   was presenting a paper showing the insecurity of a method of
   protecting music, just as Sklyarov was arrested after presenting a
   similar paper about electronic books.

   The DMCA, in spite of its supposed exception, punishes reverse
   engineering. Bans on reverse engineering in the 70s would have made
   the PC revolution (and companies like Compaq, Phoenix and Dell)
   illegal.

   The extremism of the DMCA provisions prohibiting research, development
   and publication of tools for distributing and displaying copyrighted
   works must be eliminated. These provisions drop an Iron Curtain on the
   United States of America. It should never be illegal to make or
   discuss such tools.

   Noted Signatories (see Other Signatories page:
    http://www.dibona.com/dmca/signers/index.shtml
   for more):

     Larry Augustin - CEO and Chairman, VA Linux Systems
     Jeff Bates - Executive Editor, Slashdot.org
     Brian Behlendorf - President, Apache Software Foundation, CTO
     Collab.net
     Chris DiBona - Grant Chair, Linux International
     Miguel Di Icaza - Co-Founder and CTO, Ximian Inc.
     Nat Friedman - Co-Founder and VP Product Development, Ximian Inc.
     Marty Garbus - Attorney, Frankfurt, Garbus, Kurnit, Klein & Selz,
     PC
     Jon "Maddog" Hall - Executive Director, Linux International
     Ed Hernstadt - Attorney, Frankfurt, Garbus, Kurnit, Klein & Selz,
     PC
     Rob Malda - Founder and Editor, Slashdot.org
     Don Marti - Technical Editor, Linux Journal
     Bruce Perens - Primary Author, "The Open Source Definition"
     Eric S. Raymond - President, Open Source Initiative
     Lawrence Rosen - Attorney, Rosenlaw.com and Executive Director,
     Open Source Initiative
     David Sifry - Co-Founder, LinuxCare, Inc.
     Shari Steele - Executive Director, Electronic Frontier Foundation
     Brad Templeton - Chairman of the BoardElectronic Frontier
     Foundation
     Linus Torvalds - Lead Kernel Developer, Linux
     Art F. Tyde - CEO, Linuxcare
     Bob Young - Co-Founder and Chairman, Red Hat, Inc.

   Care to join them?

   Sign your name to this declaration as well:
     http://www.dibona.com/dmca/signup/index.shtml

   Press Contacts:

   Don Marti       dmarti at zgp.org
   Eric S. Raymond esr at thyrsus.com
   Bruce Perens    bruce at perens.com
   Chris DiBona    chris at dibona.com

   Please note that all of the Press Contacts will be available for
   discussion at the O'Reilly Open Source Conference the week of the 22nd
   of July.

   Resources:

   The EFF page on Sklyarov: http://www.eff.org/IP/DMCA/US_v_Sklyarov/
   The EFF page on Edward Felten: http://www.eff.org/Legal/Cases/
   Felten_v_RIAA/
   The Free-Sklyarov Mailing list: http://zork.net/mailman/listinfo/
   free-sklyarov

  
   EFFector       Vol. 14, No. 15       July 22, 2001     editor at eff.org

   A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation     ISSN 1062-9424

    In the 175th Issue of EFFector (now with over 28,000 subscribers!):


   For more information on EFF activities & alerts: http://www.eff.org
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