[MPlayer-users] Playing a DVD from the Hard Drive: Lawsuit risk!

[Michael Halcrow]

On Thu, 2003-01-16 at 10:30, Balatoni Denes wrote:
> [Automatic answer: RTFM (read DOCS, FAQ), also read DOCS/bugreports.html]
> Hi!
> 
> > not the only. what about fast forwarding?
> oh, the DMCA allows fast forwarding ?
> :)

Fortunately, the DMCA does allow fast forwarding.

However, skipping content dynamically during playback may still get you
sued. The Directors Guild of America (DGA) is targeting products like
MovieMask, which dynamically alters content as it is displayed on the
user's computer, in a lawsuit:

http://www.dga.org/news/pr_expand.php3?281
http://www.viewerfreedom.org/legal/20020820DGA/DGAfileslawsuit.PDF

>From the first page:

---
# MovieMask, produced by Trilogy Studios, is software that consumers can
purchase online then download into their computer. The software "masks"
or filters frames either by editing scenes or dropping out language. On
the moviemask.com website, Trilogy Studios boasts that future upgrades
will have the ability to superimpose new images, words, advertising or
other material during the playback of the DVD. The software "masks" are
currently available for 41 films, though the company says it plans to
increase its library on an ongoing basis.
---

You can read about similar products getting named in the lawsuit from
the above links.

Of course, the courts are almost certainly going to find MovieMask's
actions completely legitiment, but the guys at MovieMask are still
getting hammered with legal fees just to defend themselves against this
kind of thing. I also heard a rumor of some guy with a patent-for-profit
giving MovieMask grief also. 

Mike

-- 
---------------------------------------- | ------------------------
Michael Halcrow                          | mhalcrow at byu.edu    
Research Assistant, Network Security Lab | Dept. of Comp. Science  
                                         | Brigham Young University
"Intelligence is the ability to avoid    |
doing work, yet getting the work done".  |
  - Linus Torvalds                       |
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