Lawsuits Force 321 Studios Out Of Business 465
elegie writes "321 Studios has gone out of business. Earlier, they came under fire for producing DVD disc-copying software. Specifically, it was argued by movie studios that the DVD-X Copy software and the DVD Copy Plus software violated the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) anticircumvention rules. 321 Studios argued that copying a DVD disc for personal use counted as "fair use" in terms of copyright law. The EFF has said that the closing was not surprising because of all the legal injunctions against 321 Studios."
Open source? (Score:5, Interesting)
The MPAA (Score:2)
Of course, they can't get everyone.
Besides, I suspect that since it is a Winoze application, they didn't write it to be ported. But, it can provide a good start.
Re:The MPAA (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Open source? (Score:5, Informative)
there is a far superior product that is already open source. It's called DVDshrink.
anyways, Xcopy is based on all open source tools with a delphi frontend wrapped on it to hold the call-home/DRM protection they put in it.
ignore the crud from 321, download dvdshrink instead.
Re:Open source? (Score:2, Informative)
I am sure it is still based on already available OSS tools though. (with the mpegtools and other projects you can reproduce the exact same thing that it does)
Re:Open source? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Open source? (Score:5, Informative)
Bottomline is that you don't need any payware (yes it can burn with Nero or CopyToDVD) but why? DVDShrink 3.2 and the lastest DVD Decrypter are awesome especially with the new AEC algorithms that rivals if not beats Instant Copy 8.
Re:Open source? (Score:4, Funny)
You mean I can't use Locksmith 6 or NibblesAway II anymore?
Re:Terrabyte storage and playback (Score:5, Informative)
5 x WD 250 GB SATA 7200 rpm ($170 ea)
5 x Kingwin KF-72 drive tray ($13 ea)
Adaptec 2810SA 8 channel SATA RAID card ($499 ouch)
Lian-Ling Case w/6 external 5.25" bays (CDR+drives) ($111)
400W CoolMax CX-400B power supply (zillion choices here, just picked one) ($38)
$1565, add the motherboard/processor combo of your choice, add RAM and a small boot drive (setup the 5 big drives as a big RAID), and whatever incidentals you need to finish it out (I'm lazy and didn't want to spend the time).
You could probably finish out this storage server for something like $2K or so using AMD proc/mb (don't need top of the line to share a big array). 5 drives gets you a useable 1 TB. 8 channel controller gives you the ability to enlarge the array at a later date if you wish (of course you had better be willing to re-encode or backup your data to do this).
Point is, it's doable for what I consider to be a reasonable price, if I was doing DVD archival. Should be fast as hell too...
Re:Terrabyte storage and playback (Score:3, Interesting)
Ditch the RAID card. Add some ordinary SATA controllers to your PC. Do software raid on linux, using an XFS, JFS, or ReiserFS filesystem. Get a motherboard with GigE onboard. This should keep your cost down dramatically, I think you could do the whole thing under $1500. 256MB would be plenty of memory but 512MB would allow for more caching.
A RAID controller is mandatory if your CPU is doing anything else on the system, but if all it's doing is providing NAS, then doing software RAID is the best way to g
Re:Open source? (Score:5, Insightful)
Dunno, but sounds like something that would get you in loads of trouble and cast shadows on the good work of Open Sourcers. In sympathize, but pick your battles wisely, as 321's demise should underscore. Even EFF doesn't likely have the deep pockets to fight all villains in MPAA/RIAA, etc.
Probably 321 would also suffer immense litgation if their code slipped into the wild anyway.
Re:Open source? (Score:5, Interesting)
Since when is the general public, which houses the majority of public opinion, capable of critically evaluating anything more complicated than a diluted press release?
There is a reason that news is written on such a sophomoric level and the major "news stations" attempt to cram all of their "information" into short, sixty second blurbs between their bickering guests and stunningly imbecilic hosts. People these days have no critical thinking skills at all. They have to be told what to do in the simplest possible terms. If they actually had to make their own daily decisions on any level above that which should be expected of a three year old, most of them would probably die.
Given all of this, how do you figure that the public will be smart enough to say "wait, these open shorts people are just protecting my rights to do with my DVDs as I please! This MBA A group is just an evil congolomerate attempting to stifle my use of my own personal property!" The MPAA will simply come out and brand anyone distributing the tools as dirty, filthy pirates, blame them for rate hikes, and continue rolling in the dough while the mentally retarded herd that is most of the developed world goes about its job of being obliviously fleeced by every major corporation and government on the planet.
That doesn't even take into consideration that these idiots have probably never even heard of 'open source', the 'MPAA', 'CSS', or, most important, their own fair use rights in anything more than the most superficial manner.
Lesson. (Score:4, Insightful)
Wasn't the point of the legal system once to protect the weak from the poor. Somewhere along the line something happened to that ideal.
www.fishkeeping.co.uk
Re:Lesson. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Lesson. (Score:4, Funny)
There is no "system".
Life is unreal and absurd.
Re:Lesson. (Score:5, Funny)
Yeah, those darn poor are always taking advantage of the weak.
Re:Lesson. (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Lesson. (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Lesson. (Score:4, Funny)
Two simple phrases to remember:
1. Life is like a shit sandwich. The more bread you have, the less shit you have to eat.
2. The Golden Rule - he who has the gold makes the rules.
Re:Lesson. (Score:5, Informative)
When we talk about the "legal system" it seems we are talking about the framework of laws which set the ground rules for society, and the Indo-Europeans evidently had a complex structure of thought regarding the purpose of law.
If we accept the work of Georges Dumezil as strong evidence at least for an iconographic and liturgical formula which is essentially a set of three merisms (two-fold formulas relating to a higher concept), then we are left with the argument that the Indo-Europeans probably elevated the concepts of king and priest above those of war, and those of war above those of production and wealth. We see a fallen form of this in the Indian caste system today, where the Brahmans (priests) are above the Kashatrias (warriors including the king) and the Kashatrias are above the wealthy businessmen and merchants (who often have more wealth than either the king or the brahmans).
The concept of the kings and priests in traditional IE society seems to have been one of custodianship of sacred and social order. It should be noted that in many traditions, particularly the Celtic, the king was considered to be directly responsible for the production of the land, and a drought was considered to be a result of injustice or other failure on the part of the king. One wonders whether similar ideas were brought to China by the Tocharians, as they show up later in the writings of Meng Tzu.
If we extrapolate on these concepts a bit, we end up exactly where, I think, Plato was with "The Republic" where justice is defined not so much in moral terms but rather as a state dependent on the structure and function of society. In this view, laws are not there to protect any group against any other group, except as a part of their more basic function-- the development of a set of social rules which facilitate the general working together of society towards common ends. Protection of human rights is an important aspect to this, no doubt, but it to think that the protective aspect of law is its driving force in IE traditions is, I think, to put the cart before the horse.
Were these ideas in the minds of the founding fathers? I think there is a good chance that they were. These ideas regarding the nature of Justice have been well articulated by Plato, Aristotle, and others, and I am sure that the Founding Fathers were generally aware of their work, especially given the level of influence that the writings of Plato had on various schools of esoteric thought, such as the Freemasons, and it is relatively undisputed that a great many of the Founding Fathers were Freemasons (as were a great many of the Red-coats too).
Even if they were not Freemasons, most of the Founding Fathers were quite learned people, and I would be very surprised of they had *not* studied the works of Plato and Aristotle on this topic.
Re:Lesson. (Score:3, Interesting)
The body of law forms a substrate of complex and chaotic interactions that is perfectly consistent with a living ecology. As forces inpinge from the outside, populations and affiliations move, break, reform, and new structures are forever unfolding from this churning stew
Re:Lesson. (Score:3)
I think the point of the legal system was to protect the right from the wrong. Right and wrong, however, changes.
Re:Lesson. (Score:3, Funny)
the REAL truth (Score:5, Funny)
The REAL reason they went out of business is that everyone was burning and distributing illegal copies of their software.
[/joke]
no surprise (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:no surprise (Score:2, Funny)
DVD X COPY.
The Best-Selling software for backing up your DVD movies.
More info here.
Oh, the irony.
Re:no surprise (Score:5, Insightful)
If you are a less than computer savvy user at your local Best Buy wandering around the software section, you are far more likely to stumble upon DVD-X and use it then you are to find dvdshrink on your own.
Re:no surprise (Score:3, Insightful)
It's easy to say "People should use Y instead of Z", but if you do not make it easy for all users to obtain Y in a way that they find easy (no 5 step process (ie simple boxed copy), you do not win them over.
Under the same logic I am using... part of the reason Windows bas
Re:no surprise (Score:3, Interesting)
I still think they should open-source the software.
"If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possible know..."
At least then they'd have more incentive to find other ways to close down an operation they
Re:no surprise (Score:3, Interesting)
I'm only sorry that Robert Moore had to spend all his money on fighting this fight for us, instead of tricking out a Hummer.
So how about releasing the code? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:So how about releasing the code? (Score:3, Informative)
The reason they went out of business is that a court issued an injunction against them. The court enjoined them from making their DVD ripper available, because the product is deemed to violate the DMCA. I think it is likely that distribution of the source code would constitute a violation of that injunction.
Re:So how about releasing the code? (Score:5, Interesting)
If someone tells you otherwise it's time to a) write your Congresscritter a nice note or b) burn down a building or two. You didn't hear b) from me though
Re:So how about releasing the code? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:So how about releasing the code? (Score:5, Informative)
Worse than that. Violation of an injunction is contempt of court, and willful violation could be deemed criminal contempt of court. Remember, corporations act through people, and people can be arrested, indicted, convicted, and punished. Bankruptcy and corporate status will not shield you from criminal liability.
321 might of been right ... (Score:5, Insightful)
Rus
great (Score:2)
Re:great (Score:2)
Fairuse wizard (Score:2)
I can't stand it (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:I can't stand it (Score:3, Informative)
Re:I can't stand it (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:I can't stand it (Score:5, Interesting)
Stalking is illegal. The seller has no right to monitor your use after you leave their shop. The grocery store does not have terms of use on knives. The drugstore does not have terms of use on aspirin. The hardware store does not have terms of use on power-nailers. The sporting goods store does not have terms of use on baseball bats.
A sale with "terms of use" is a rental, not a sale. Auto agencies of "terms of use" on car rentals. Contractor stores have "terms of use" on equipment. Landlords have "terms of use" for property. It may be a rental with an unspecified time limit, but it is still a rental. Violation of a rental agreement is a civil matter which requires the renter to retain legal counsel and compile a case.
What is the difference between "licensing" and "renting", other than a legal manipulation by which the renter has passed the financial burden of legal counsel and making the case onto the taxpaying public?
Re:I can't stand it (Score:3, Insightful)
A sale with "terms of use" is usually a sale, with an unenforcable terms of use.
Now how else will I back up my movies (Score:5, Funny)
This is probably a good thing. (Score:5, Informative)
To tie in to this article, I will award a Gmail invite for anyone who can prove to me that it's legal under the DMCA to stand on a street corner and recite DeCSS. It is of course illegal, which means that Free Speech is dead in America, but if you manage to prove me wrong and include an address, the invite will be on its way. Good luck!
Re:This is probably a good thing. (Score:2, Funny)
A gmail account in return for proving free speech in America isn't dead? man, you're cheap...
Re:This is probably a good thing. (Score:3, Insightful)
What's really amazing is that people won't care. The MPAA (and RIAA for that matter) has been able to c
Re:This is probably a good thing. (Score:5, Insightful)
An idealist would say that people should care anyway, even if they aren't personally affected. A pessimist (the parent) would say that people will never care, no matter what. A realist says people are motivated most strongly by self-interest. Me, I agree with the idealist about what should be, and with the realist about what is ;-)
A cynical realist says that the masses care only when it limits their bread and circuses. But inability to copy DVDs actually does cut into that...
Re:This is probably a good thing. (Score:5, Insightful)
I think it's you that misunderstands. People aren't going to understand that they have a leg to stand on especially with more and more money being pumped into lawmaking to enable the MPAA/RIAA to do what they want.
People aren't motivated by much these days. We have always had factions that went against the norm. Everyone else conforms. Sad reality but a true one.
Re:This is probably a good thing. (Score:5, Interesting)
The PATRIOT act put into law many things for which the legal system had already set precedent in one form or another; there was just no codification of these items into law until a moment of panic ensued and *whoosh* along come laws that certain members of law enforcement have been trying to get through for years. Along comes a limitation on freedom in exchange for the perception of heightened safety.
I see internet-related regulation going in much the same fasion. The obvious answer with this one, however, lies with all of us: don't do illegal shit and no one will have to pass these laws. Stop using P2P to share copyrighted works. We have already gotten ourselves in enough trouble with the DMCA, don't let it go any further.
From their FAQ (Score:5, Interesting)
How long until 321 will be required to hand over their customer list (at least the ones that registered)? If they can force this company out of business, it seems to me the next step is to go after the users. You know, the ones doing the acutal "law breaking".
Re:From their FAQ (Score:2)
Re:From their FAQ (Score:2, Interesting)
If you use peerguardian and 321 Software you will notice that the program does not work because it blocks reporting to the 321 sites. This means that not only do they have a legal list of registered users that have bought it, but they also have a l
Re:From their FAQ (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:From their FAQ (Score:2)
Uh, never. 321 was making money off sales of something that bypassed encryption. This pissed off the movie industry ONLY because it affected sales.
The industry could care less if individuals create their own backups. The only people they'd want to "go after" are those that made money off 321 (e.g. people who used the software to sell pirated copies of movies).
Re:From their FAQ (Score:2)
Dangerous precedant (Score:5, Interesting)
Not really newsworthy... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Not really newsworthy... (Score:2)
Waiting for the last move. (Score:3, Insightful)
Well there are alternatives (Score:2, Interesting)
Use DVD-Decrypter or DVD-Shrink. (Score:5, Informative)
See here [mrbass.org] for more information on DVD Shrink.
They are both free and work well.
Re:Use DVD-Decrypter or DVD-Shrink. (Score:2)
Re:Use DVD-Decrypter or DVD-Shrink. (Score:2)
Re:Use DVD-Decrypter or DVD-Shrink. (Score:2)
Re:Use DVD-Decrypter or DVD-Shrink. (Score:2)
I don't understand (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:I don't understand (Score:5, Informative)
Anyway consumer DVD burners are incapable of writing to the portion of the disc holding the CSS keys, so there is no way for an average user to burn a bit-for-bit copy of a DVD without decrypting the data first. Commercial DVD authoring systems can do it, but they're not exactly cheap, and neither is the blank media.
Re:I don't understand (Score:5, Informative)
Put in another way, you can't burn a CSS-encrypted DVD yourself.
Ed.
Re:I don't understand (Score:3, Insightful)
From the article (Score:3, Insightful)
They left no choice (Score:3, Insightful)
But when you package the software sell it in retail stores and pretty much stick in front of the industry's face what do you expect them to do? Make better movies in hopes people will be so taken back they have to buy the movie? Spend countless millions developing better security to have it broken in a week or just shut down 321?
321 Studios is... (Score:2)
Theoretical right to fair use (Score:5, Interesting)
From NewScientist [newscientist.com]
Backups not legal? (Score:5, Interesting)
Some have argued that fair use would allow making backups of general content, but since such usage is not educational or for research purposes, and would have commercial impact, it seems like a weak argument to me. In any case, it has never been confirmed in the courts.
DVD X-Copy is free(as in speech)? (Score:5, Funny)
They went out of business in the "US" only (Score:5, Interesting)
As usual (Score:4, Interesting)
os x (Score:2)
however, there is now an option for mac users.fast dvd copy 2 [fastdvdcopy.com] is awesome. MacWorld just gave it 3 1/2 mouse rating in the latest issue.
suprised? (Score:2)
Did anyone _not_ see this coming? The precedent concerning distributing the deCSS had been set long before the company came into existance
Comment removed (Score:5, Funny)
Other solutions (Score:5, Interesting)
321 Studios has a bastard brand: 123 Copy DVD (Score:5, Interesting)
If you wish to see how damn clever they are, they do not actually include de-cryption software in the product. They do however link directly to a "3rd Party Plugin" site which features a downloadable plug-in which works exclusively with 123 copy DVD.
Talk about legal maneuvering!
Re:321 Studios has a bastard brand: 123 Copy DVD (Score:3, Interesting)
IAmNotALawyer, but I believe there are some circumstances such protection can be breached. Of course, since it doesn't look like 321 studios had major liabilites when they were shut down (since the MPAA mainly sought the injunction, not damages), they may be able to
GPL?? (Score:3, Interesting)
Sure, one can easily argue that there are other apps that do (IMHO) a better job and are free (like DVD Shrink), but being as high-profile as their company has been the last few months, being that they sell their products in retail stores, a move like that might garner some pretty serious publicity and would surely ruffle the feathers of their adversary.
Even though the cat has been out of the bag for a while regarding CSS, them sending out copies of sourcecode would surely have social/emotional impact.
My guess is that someone there would probably be sent to jail for further violating the DMCA (not only making an anti-circumvention tool that people can use to backup and *gasp* copy DVDs, but giving a bunch of "no good hackers and pirates" the ability to modify the software for other nefarious purposes (oh no!)). But I'm sure there's a way they could get around the law to do it.
Definition of Fair Use (Score:3, Informative)
It seems clear that personal backups are for purposes of protection in case the disk breaks, not for criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research. None of those provisions would protect personal backups as fair use. The law goes on to say:
On point 1, personal backups are not for nonprofit educational purposes, but rather to save money in case the disk breaks, which counts as a commercial use. On point 2, the works are typically creative, original commercial works which have the full protection of the copyright laws. On point 3, it is the entirety of the work which is copied, not just an excerpt. And on point 4, the existence of free backups would reduce re-sales of replacement disks, not to mention that it might cut into new sales if the "backups" are illicitly shared.
Based on the text of the statute, personal backups fail every test that would make them fair use. Anyone disagree?
Re:Definition of Fair Use (Score:3, Informative)
Well, the EFF and "many lawyers" would disagree.
From their website FAQ on Fair Use [eff.org]:
4. What's been recognized as fair use?
Courts have previously found that a use was fair where the use of the copyrighted work was socially beneficial. In particular, U.S. courts have recognized the following fair uses: criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, research and parodies.
In ad
Blank dont Blank blank blank do (Score:5, Insightful)
Guns don't kill people, people do
Cars don't kill people, people do
Software don't break laws, people do
Knives don't kill people, people do
Sorry but hello law makers please take reeval your prioritys.. If you want to do something good make laws that keep guns out of killers hands, that keep cars out of the hands of drunk drivers and things like that..
Spend more time protecting the PEOPLE not the greedy big business.
With INDUCE Act this will become a common story (Score:5, Interesting)
Go to EFF's Action Center [eff.org] and savetheipod.com [savetheipod.com] to take action! Let your Senators know that they should be supporting Rep. Boucher's DMCRA [house.gov] rather than INDUCE.
We can turn the tide here if we take action!
Why the DMCA is just wrong (Score:3, Insightful)
What is the difference between a product which is sold and a product which is rented? A product which is sold is the property of the owner and the owner has the right to do with it as they please. A product which is rented is still the property of the owner and the renter is bound by terms of a usage agreement. What, then, is the difference between a product which is licensed and a product which is rented? There is none. When a consumer rents a product they sign a contract accepting terms of use. When a consumer purchases a software/media license they accept a contract accepting terms of use.
Why the jargon difference, then?
The jargon difference is this: the breach of a rental agreement is a civil matter which requires the owner to retain legal counsel and compile a legal case. Consider the rights of landlords, automobile rental agencies, or your local hardware store renting out powertools. The breach of a license agreement has been manipulated to be a felony offense in which the financial burden of investigation has been passed onto the taxpaying public as a whole.
There is not a more blatant example of corporate political graft.
TAKE action /. the vote (Score:3, Interesting)
The recent events of orin hatch [slashdot.org], DMCA shinanigans [slashdot.org] have just gone too far. there are allot of people on
1. Register the domain www.nomoreorin.org and use it for a organizational starting place to campaign against his reelection
2. Gather all of the evidence and bills that he is against peoples rights and is in the pay of the *aa
3. Work to form a grass roots party in his hometown to make sure that he is defeated buy a landslide in the next election.
4. Try to set up rallys and protests in his community with pamphlets that say
1. Your senator wants to outlaw your VCR, Tivo, DVR
2. Your senator wants to outlaw your computer
3. Your senator wants to put viruses and destroy your computer if you do something he doe sent approve of
4. Your senator helped to put an innocent Russian Civilian in jail without due process over writing an essentially legal program.
5. Your senator wants to remove your rights to make backup copies of movies and software that you already own
6. Your senator cares more about the *aa than the people who elected him
7. Your senator has accepted XXXXX$ from these *aa groups
5. Next target any and all politicians that have shown support for the DMCA, INDUCE or have received an money from the *AA
6. If we send a message to the government that clearly states that
1. If you accept any money from the *AA we will see to it that your political career is destroyed.
2. Supporting any bill that restricts a users rights to media he owns will result in your not getting elected.
It is evidently clear that if we do not act now. your right to use a computer or any kind of audio and visual media will be severely restricted.
Depending on the replies to this post i will reserve and set up the
www.nomoreorin.org website.
and will do what i can to help a movement whose time have come
if you have any questions email me at
eric.aint.net (spam proof)
Goal Achieved, Next target (Score:4, Insightful)
If it cant be done via the legal system directly, then just sue them to the point they cant afford to keep fighting.
Its too bad you cant recoup costs from tactics like this.. When you are innocent, but are under attack.
This is the same thing they are trying with other industries as well, such as the gun industry. Expect more, as its VERY effective..
DVD XCopy required activation (Score:3, Informative)
Apparently that is not the case (at least not yet). According to their FAQ [321studios.com], "You will be able to activate your 321 product online either through the computer where the software is installed or through another computer which is online, using a floppy disk. Telephone activation will not be available."
Re:Grrr, but ok (Score:5, Insightful)
Legally speaking King George was right and we founded an entire nation by challenging that. I can never see why people have such great respect for laws which can be so easily manipulated when history has shown that we have a moral obligation to challenge laws which are in violation of natural truths. In the case of the DMCA, the natural truth is: "If you sell something to me it's mine and I can do with it as I please."
Talk about a slippery slope (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm unaware of an authoritative or canonical list of these so-called natural truths. It occurs to me that one person's natural truth is likely to clash directly with another's. No one of us can legitemately claim to have a particular access to any particular objective truth. We've each got our own 'personal truth' and that is natural.
I don't disagree with your claim that people must exercise personal discretion and conscience and challenge laws they percieve as unust. But in doing so, they must be aware it is only their own point of view they represent, their own perception, not any particular idealized or absolute definition of what is true and right. That kind of thinking (that one is in possession of or has access some absolute moral or social truth) doesn't lead in very good directions - I think history speaks to that point.
Re:Talk about a slippery slope (Score:3)
Poppycock. Welcome to science and logic.
But in doing so, they must be aware it is only their own point of view they represent, not any particular idealized or absolute definition of what is true and right.
Must? Who are you to impose your ideas on my view of reality?
That kind of thinking (that one is in possession of or has access some absolute moral or social truth) doesn't lead in very good direction
Re:How EXACTLY did DVD X-Copy violate the DMCA?? (Score:5, Informative)
The original encrypted copy was decrypted for the purpose of making a copy. 321 sold this software. The former is not expressly forbidden by the DMCA, the latter is.
DVD X-Copy is not illegal, nor is using it for fair use, but distributing it in any way IS illegal.
(At least, that's how I understand it).
Re:With dual-layer burners starting to turn up... (Score:3, Insightful)
In order to re-compress DVD data to fit on a single layer disc, you have to circumvent CSS encryption. But if you're just doing a raw sector copy, you don't. Arguably.
I suppose they'll just argue that by reading raw sectors, you're circumventing DRM. Then they'll lobby Congress to outlaw disk editors and undeleters, and require file system drivers to be digitally signed by the MPAA.
Re:With dual-layer burners starting to turn up... (Score:3, Informative)
True enough--but here's something else to think about. If you try to copy encrypted VOBs with Windows, you get an "access denied" error; it won't even copy the ciphertext. I don't think the MPAA would have much trouble convincing a judge that going underneath the file level to the sector level is therefore circumventing an access control, regardless of whether the contro