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Appeals court overturns original Kaleidescape decision, another blow to legal DVD copying

13 August 2009 13:37 by James "Dela" Delahunty | 18 comments

On Wednesday, a California appeals court overturned a previous ruling that had declared Kaleidescape's DVD storage machine legal, siding with the film industry in the dispute. The decision mirrors a court decision the previous day that resulted in an injunction being placed on RealNetworks' RealDVD software and Facet prototype HDD-equipped DVD player.

In March 2007, a District court judge agreed with Kaleidescape's position that nothing in the Content Scrambling System (CSS) license it obtained from the DVD Copy Control Association (DVD-CCA) forbade it from creating hardware that could copy and store digital content from movie DVDs. The appeals court disagreed.

"We're obviously disappointed by the court's decision" said Michael Malcolm, Kaleidescape's CEO. "Our plan is to go to the Supreme Court of California. We're confident that were not in breach of our contract with the DVDCCA and until then our products remain fully legal and licensed."

The film industry believes it has the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) on its side, which has provisions against technology that can be used to circumvent copy protection mechanisms and facilitate illegal copying. However, at issue is whether consumers are allowed to make copies for personal use - fair use, and none of the rulings of the past few days have answered that question.

In fact, in the RealDVD decision, U.S. District Judge Marilyn Hall Patel commented that it may in fact be technically legal to do. "It may well be fair use for an individual consumer to store a backup copy of a personally owned DVD on that individual's computer," Patel wrote, "a federal law (the DMCA) has nonetheless made it illegal to manufacture or traffic in a device or tool that permits a consumer to make such copies."

Permalink to this article | Topic: Lawsuits & Legislation

RealNetworks appeals RealDVD ruling (9 October 2009)

RealNetworks accuses MPAA of anti-competitive practices (18 May 2009)

RealNetworks shows off DVD jukebox in court (14 May 2009)

RealDVD is for 'legitimate users': CEO (29 April 2009)

Legal DVD ripping now available from Real (8 September 2008)

Kaleidescape System gets a 1080p upscaling DVD player (19 June 2008)

DVD-CCA files brief in appeal of Kaleidescape decision (18 December 2007)

Kaleidescape CEO responds to another proposed CSS amendment (3 November 2007)

DVD licensing body responds to anti-trust threat (18 August 2007)

Kaleidescape ruling may affect 'managed copy' (9 April 2007)

DVD CCA loses case against Kaleidescape (31 March 2007)

Kaleidescape to bring DVD servers to UK (14 February 2006)

ESS DVD Copying chips lawsuit settled (14 April 2005)

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Discuss this article!
ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 13 August 2009 17:41
But...its not circumventing it.... they bought the license thus its legit. [ + quote]
KillerBug (Senior Member) 14 August 2009 0:21
"a federal law (the DMCA) has nonetheless made it illegal to manufacture or traffic in a device or tool that permits a consumer to make such copies." Yet BluRay burners are perfectly legal. This is a sign of a courupt court and government that only certain small manufacturers are being targeted. [ + quote]
Cassi1125 (Newbie) 14 August 2009 9:58
Interestingly weird decision on the part of the Court. Will all of the manufacturers be ordered to stop producing burners then? And will the government then proceed to sue all of said manufacturers? [ + quote]
ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 14 August 2009 12:21
*Originally posted by KillerBug:* "a federal law (the DMCA) has nonetheless made it illegal to manufacture or traffic in a device or tool that permits a consumer to make such copies." Yet BluRay burners are perfectly legal. This is a sign of a courupt court and government that only certain small manufacturers are being targeted. Not to mention one can not make a back up anymore because of the DMCA, this sues licensed DMCA approved hardware to make that backup it seems the court failed to understand that. THis reminds me of the tax stamp for pot.... [ + quote]
ThePastor (Junior Member) 14 August 2009 16:53
*Quote:* Interestingly weird decision on the part of the Court. Will all of the manufacturers be ordered to stop producing burners then? And will the government then proceed to sue all of said manufacturers? With todays technology this premise would have to extend to all computers and most cell-phones, not to mention the USB drives they support. You do not need a burner to play a ripped DVD on a media player. You only need the files placed onto a USB thumb drive or USB HDD which then plugs into your video game or media player. It would be crazy if a ruling from a lower court suddenly made all PC's illegal. [ + quote]
Tristan_2 (Junior Member) 17 August 2009 8:38
*Originally posted by Cassi1125:* Interestingly weird decision on the part of the Court. Will all of the manufacturers be ordered to stop producing burners then? And will the government then proceed to sue all of said manufacturers? It really makes me wonder too, because if they don't do so with especially Blu Ray Burners then its the DMCA being a bunch of Hippocrates suing their own legal companies thus their own legal software...you would really think they understand why their is piracy to begin with. Because of what the DMCA does to even the legit people and companies [ + quote]
ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 17 August 2009 8:42
*Quote:* *Originally posted by Cassi1125:* Interestingly weird decision on the part of the Court. Will all of the manufacturers be ordered to stop producing burners then? And will the government then proceed to sue all of said manufacturers? It really makes me wonder too, because if they don't do so with especially Blu Ray Burners then its the DMCA being a bunch of Hippocrates suing their own legal companies thus their own legal software...you would really think they understand why their is piracy to begin with. Because of what the DMCA does to even the legit people and companies The DMCA is current goverment rules of copying and copy protection and copy right(basically). The system in place cherry picks and was made to cherry pick. And the cherry pickers are those with the most money to sue with. Legal?moral? it dose not matter as long as there is a loophole so they can bully you through the court. [ + quote] This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 17 August 2009 8:43
bogwart16 (Newbie) 20 August 2009 6:47
*Quote:* ..... the DMCA being a bunch of Hippocrates... They make you sick, don't they? :) [ + quote]
Snipes_ (Newbie) 20 August 2009 13:09
I wonder when it will be illegal to invite a friend over to watch a DVD or listen to music, since they did not pay for the priveledge to "use" the media...or did they make that rule already? They will have to pry my burner from my cold dead hand... [ + quote]
Tarsellis (Newbie) 20 August 2009 16:36
*Originally posted by Snipes_:* I wonder when it will be illegal to invite a friend over to watch a DVD or listen to music, since they did not pay for the priveledge to "use" the media...or did they make that rule already? They will have to pry my burner from my cold dead hand... Already in the works. Haven't you heard that the RIAA is suing right now to make music ringtones illegal. If you have a ringtone your purchased on your phone, and it rings in public, they want to charge you "performance fees" for said act. This is only the beginning folks. Remember, the thugs that run our country have VERY similar mindsets to Hitler and Stalin as to their power over the people and right to regulate our lives and our economies. Just imagine what they'd have done if they had the power and tools we do now! and you'll see where this leads, and that apparently 1984 wasn't so far fetched. [ + quote]
bogwart16 (Newbie) 20 August 2009 16:49
That's all true, but let's keep it in perspective. We're talking about a bunch of penny ante thugs called the RIAA, not the government or its agencies. Which are much bigger thugs and not overly concerned about a few cents for ringtones I'm not in the US, but as far as I'm concerned they wouldn't have a chance with this crap in the UK. The point of a ringtone is that it should be heard, and they are called mobile phones because they're used mainly outside. How could they expect anyone to buy a ringtone which could not be lawfully used? [ + quote]
Tarsellis (Newbie) 20 August 2009 17:06
*Originally posted by bogwart16:* That's all true, but let's keep it in perspective. We're talking about a bunch of penny ante thugs called the RIAA, not the government or its agencies. Which are much bigger thugs and not overly concerned about a few cents for ringtones I'm not in the US, but as far as I'm concerned they wouldn't have a chance with this crap in the UK. The point of a ringtone is that it should be heard, and they are called mobile phones because they're used mainly outside. How could they expect anyone to buy a ringtone which could not be lawfully used? Oh, it'll fail, I'm sure. But still, it shows you the mind set of the companies that own most of the American congress. I'd hardly call the RIAA penny ante, but I supposed it does fit when comparing it to a fascist state the size of the US federal government. [ + quote]
six60six (Newbie) 20 August 2009 18:14
*Quote:* *Quote:* ..... the DMCA being a bunch of Hippocrates... They make you sick, don't they? :) too funny [ + quote]
senator29 (Newbie) 21 August 2009 2:11
the RIAA do have key supporters throughout our government. senate, house and several heavy hitting government agencies. RIAA is one of the puppeteers of our government and judicial system. [ + quote]
bagio (Newbie) 22 August 2009 11:40
The part I don't understand about making copies of DVDs is that it is legal to make a backup copy of software programs you buy on CDs which have a copywrite so why not DVDs !!! [ + quote]
senator29 (Newbie) 22 August 2009 16:25
the only sure fire way to eliminate piracy is to eliminate the ability to make copies. only way to stop copying is to stop production of capable software. only way to do that properly is if it is illegal. the entertainment industry are insane, not sane. if our government was as retarded as the ent. industry then they would make alcohol illegal so we don't have any more drunk driving. what i don't understand is why people have to be so greedy and power hungry. why would anyone need to make more than a few million a year? large houses do not NEED to cost what they do. luxury cars do not NEED to cost what they do. its all stupid status. quality and value was lost decades ago. its all about quantity and profits and having the most money that you will never ever have time to spend. [ + quote]
bogwart16 (Newbie) 22 August 2009 16:36
*Originally posted by senator29:* if our government was as retarded as the ent. industry then they would make alcohol illegal so we don't have any more drunk driving... In Scandinavia the permissible amount of alcohol in a driver's blood is ...nil. In Europe generally we kill about a third (per capita) of the people you do on your roads every year - even more people than those killed by firearms. Why is the saving of life retarded? [ + quote]
senator29 (Newbie) 22 August 2009 16:47
I was misunderstood. Retarded being that the government make alcohol illegal so drunk driving cant happen even though it would happen. I do believe our laws should be tougher. Weed should be legal so people drink less. Drunk driving is like playing with lives. If you were foolish with a gun which has the same outcome, death, you do get in a lot more trouble here. Drunk driving is no different or any stupidity for that matter. The point was that personal dvd copying should be allowed. Those who share ripped content should be punished not those who want to use their dvds in multiple ways with technology or prevent the loss of movies through stealing or damage. [ + quote]