Help the Electronic Frontier Foundation Keep Jailbreaking Legal

[Phillip Swanson]

The Digital Millenium Copyright Act prevents people from circumventing digital rights management and other technological measures used to protect copyrighted material. However, DMCA, just like the much talked about SOPA, has its fair share of loopholes and possible abuses companies and governments can levee against consumers.

Every three years the U.S. Copyright Office holds a “rulemaking” meeting to consider granting exemptions to the DMCA in an effort help prevent harm from being caused to “legitimate non-infringing uses of copyrighted materials.” During the 2009 meeting the EFF won an exemption for jailbreakers and remix artists. During the 2012 meeting the EFF is asking the Copyright Office to continue to protect jailbreaking smartphones, and video game consoles as well as expand the exemption to tablets. If they don’t renew the exemption and expand it, the very basis of the MMi community becomes an illegal activity.

According to the EFF this is how you can help:

The Copyright Office needs to hear from people who depend on the ability to jailbreak to write, use, and/or tinker with independent software (from useful apps to essential security fixes) for smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. You can submit comments online at this link.

Here are some questions you might want to address in your comments:

• Which jailbreaking exemption are you supporting—smartphones/tablets, video game consoles, or both?
• What's your background (i.e., are you a developer, hobbyist, academic, independent researcher, user, etc.)?
• What device do you want to ensure you have the legal authority to jailbreak?
• Please explain why you want to jailbreak this device. What limitations do you face if you aren't able to jailbreak it? Is there software you couldn't run, computing capabilities you wouldn't have, cool things you couldn’t do, etc.?
• If you’re a developer, did an online application store or console manufacturer reject your app or game? If so, what reasons did they give?
• Is there anything else you want to tell the Copyright Office?

Concrete examples will help show the Copyright Office why they should renew and expand the exemptions for jailbreaking. Send your comments to the Copyright Office athttp://www.copyright.gov/1201/comment-forms/. Where the form says “Comment number(s) of proposed classes of works to which you are responding,” enter a “3” if you’re writing about game consoles or a “5” if you’re writing about smartphones or tablets.

Comments are due by February 10 at 5 PM Eastern Time. Please send a copy of your comments to [email protected] so that we can see what people are saying. We’ll keep your comments confidential.

We can't stress enough how important you the members of the MMi are in the process of preserving Jailbreaking. Help the EFF, and help jailbreakers everywhere. Without the necessary exemptions every aspect of the Jailbreak community can be prosecuted and shut down. Don’t let Apple and other manufacturers decide the fate of the jailbreak community.

Source: EFF

[*T*]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

[metaserph]

" and on another note totally unrelated to I'm an idiot...." 0_o

[Mrteacup]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

im glad you found it essential to comment saying that. Either way what does that have to do with this post?

[UndecidedApollo]

Will do Phillip !!

[luvmytj]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

Why even come here to comment then? This is a very important topic that affects users everywhere, not just Mmi users, that would include you if you use a jailbroken device.

I suggest everyone take part in this campaign to help us keep legitimate jailbreaks.

[swpelchat]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

What does that have to do with the price of tea in china? In other words your opinion is irrelevant to the topic.

[Phillip Swanson]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

[Anthony Bouchard]

Eh, it's just a typical *T* comment.

Honestly, there's no reason to make jailbreaking illegal. It doesn't break any current laws.

[celeron]

The guy is trolling

[quidam_brujah]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

Trollsign!

[Truckerbear]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

Right that is why your replying here.. LOL

[quidam_brujah]

As soon as I wrap up my latest 99% rant to my congresscritter.

[santacruzlocal]

"Legal" "Illegal" Jail Breaking will NEVER go away !!!!!!!!!

[keenpois0n]

apple will lose a chunk of customers is jbing stops...I know id go. probably the galaxy s2

[exNavy]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

This post is just as useful as the ones made by all the 9 year old little boys on this site who have to say "first" on all news posts because their mommy won't let them leave the house yet on their own to explore the world.

[louietsang]

apple will lose a chunk of customers is jbing stops...I know id go. probably the galaxy s2

doubtful. i really doubt the people who wouldn't buy an iphone b/c there's no jb would really affect apple's wallets...

[hogcia]

MMi isn't good anyway. I've been goin to Engadget recently

Stfu fool!

[ScooterComputer]

Honestly, there's no reason to make jailbreaking illegal. It doesn't break any current laws.

Sorry Anthony, you are wrong. During the last DMCA exemption process, Jailbreaking was exempted. Apple filed vociferously against an exemption. Since it -was- exempted, that would necessarily mean that the Librarian of Congress felt that otherwise it would have been a violation of the DMCA's Access Control Mechanism provision, which makes it illegal to bypass an encryption mechanism (which is what jailbreaking does). So, it was illegal, it is currently exempted (so now, legal), but could be reversed. For instance, the previous exemption only applies to phones...not to iPads or iPod Touches. It is a gray legal area, hence the renewed push to extend.

Personally, I think Exemption Class 10 is another interesting class worthy of our support. It is asking for an exemption for personal "fair use" to bypass DVD and Blu-ray encryption schemes by end users. Right now it is ILLEGAL to rip a DVD, even if you bought it. Not because you don't have fair use rights to the content, legal precedent says you do, but because there is an encryption scheme sitting in your way (CSS, an Access Control Mechanism) that the DMCA forbids you from circumventing (except in cases where exemptions are stipulated--the ones we're talking about). It is also illegal to create and distribute software (like Handbrake) that allows others to circumvent ACMs. I think that supporting Class 10 would send a pretty strong message to the MPAA (RIAA) that content purchasers are NOT "pirates" and should NOT be targeted in DMCA actions. Class 10 might could allow Apple to enable an iTunes Match-type service for DVDs and Blu-rays; at the very least it would allow for iTunes to rip DVDs as it does CDs. It would also make the job of the content owners a bit more difficult, as it could be argued that sites like The Pirate Bay then have a legal foundation for existence: to facilitate the free trading of transcoded, format-shifted content legally between digital-content-owning end-users.

[Daerid]

Sorry Anthony, you are wrong. During the last DMCA exemption process, Jailbreaking was exempted. Apple filed vociferously against an exemption. Since it -was- exempted, that would necessarily mean that the Librarian of Congress felt that otherwise it would have been a violation of the DMCA's Access Control Mechanism provision, which makes it illegal to bypass an encryption mechanism (which is what jailbreaking does). So, it was illegal, it is currently exempted (so now, legal), but could be reversed. For instance, the previous exemption only applies to phones...not to iPads or iPod Touches. It is a gray legal area, hence the renewed push to extend.

Personally, I think Exemption Class 10 is another interesting class worthy of our support. It is asking for an exemption for personal "fair use" to bypass DVD and Blu-ray encryption schemes by end users. Right now it is ILLEGAL to rip a DVD, even if you bought it. Not because you don't have fair use rights to the content, legal precedent says you do, but because there is an encryption scheme sitting in your way (CSS, an Access Control Mechanism) that the DMCA forbids you from circumventing (except in cases where exemptions are stipulated--the ones we're talking about). It is also illegal to create and distribute software (like Handbrake) that allows others to circumvent ACMs. I think that supporting Class 10 would send a pretty strong message to the MPAA (RIAA) that content purchasers are NOT "pirates" and should NOT be targeted in DMCA actions. Class 10 might could allow Apple to enable an iTunes Match-type service for DVDs and Blu-rays; at the very least it would allow for iTunes to rip DVDs as it does CDs. It would also make the job of the content owners a bit more difficult, as it could be argued that sites like The Pirate Bay then have a legal foundation for existence: to facilitate the free trading of transcoded, format-shifted content legally between digital-content-owning end-users.

Supremely well written <tips hat>...