MPAA Fires Back at AACS Decryption Utility

RulerOf writes "The AACS Decryption utility released this past December known as BackupHDDVD originally authored by Muslix64 of the Doom9 forums has received its first official DMCA Takedown Notice. It has been widely speculated that the utility itself was not an infringing piece of software due to the fact that it is merely "a textbook implementation of AACS," written with the help of documents publicly available at the AACS LA's website, and that the AACS Volume Unique Keys that the end user isn't supposed to have access to are in fact the infringing content, but it appears that such is not the case." From the thread "...you must input keys and then it will decrypt the encrypted content. If this is the case, than according to the language of the DMCA it does sound like it is infringing. Section 1201(a) says that it is an infringement to "circumvent a technological measure." The phrase, "circumvent a technological measure" is defined as "descramb(ling) a scrambled work or decrypt(ing) an encrypted work, ... without the authority of the copyright owner." If BackupHDDVD does in fact decrypt encrypted content than per the DMCA it needs a license to do that."

well..

[pair-a-noyd]

1. Horse
2. Gate
3. ???
4. Profit!

So let me get this straight...

[physicsnick]

They're firing back at the total and utter destruction of AACS by using... lawyers.

Yeah. That'll stop piracy.

Re:So let me get this straight...

[Dr. Eggman]

Lacky: "Sir! Pirates in the nets, breakin' yur AACS!"
MPAA: "We must respond with out most powerful weapon: Ready the Lawyer Cannons."

Re:So let me get this straight...

[The Real Toad King]

Lacky: "But sir! Wouldn't firing our lawyers out of cannons seriously injure them?"
MPAA: "I SAID READY THE LAWYER CANNONS GODDAMMIT!"

Re:Turtles all the way down

[StikyPad]

Some MPAA members worship a deity who allegedly convinced them to elect the government which runs the university which runs the computer store which sold me the computer which allowed me to run my operating system which allowed me to download this utility which allowed me to circumvent this encryption... ...in the hole at the bottom of the sea.

Mirror, mirror, on the wall...

[Lethyos]

Who has proliferated, most of all?

Re:So let me get this straight...

[troll -1]

MPAA: "We must respond with out most powerful weapon: Ready the Lawyer Cannons."

Methinks ye meant canons as in:

(Eccl.) A law, or rule of doctrine or discipline, enacted by a council and confirmed by the pope or the sovereign; a decision, regulation, code, or constitution made by ecclesiastical authority.

Thou shalt not circumvent this sacred AACS, nor be curious about it, nor shall thee seek to understand the inners of its secret workings lest thee be driven to infernal damnation. It be the ruling of this inquisition on pain of death that thee recant all allegiance to curiosity.

Re:Isn't AACS encryption just AES?

[hcmtnbiker]

Actually the DMCA reads like this:

(2) No person shall manufacture, import, offer to the public, provide, or otherwise traffic in any technology, product, service, device, component, or part thereof, that - (A) is primarily designed or produced for the purpose of circumventing a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title;

So there you have it. This is perfectly legal because AACS doesnt "effectively controls access."
------
Infact that whole part of the law contradicts itself, if you have a technological measure that bipasses DRM, wouldnt that DRM not effectively control access to the work?

Re:Isn't AACS encryption just AES?

[Anonymous Coward]

Its almost as if the key controls the access and the software just uses the key to decrypt it!

Re:I should... - the cartoon version

[Adeptus_Luminati]

I have a fox-trot cartoon clip in my cubicle

In it, the kid is sitting at his computer rubbing his hands and licking his lips. His mother asks him what he is is doing...

Mother: What are you doing?
Kid: I'm creating digital music. The first song I'll call "0" and the second I'll call "1".
Kid: Anybody who then publishes CDs with replicas of my content will be sued for Trillions of dollars due to Billions of instances of copyright infringements! MPAA & RIAA will be my first victims.
Mother: Remind me not to allow you to go to law school.
Kid: Ahhhh! To live in America! (dollar signs in his eyes).

Adeptus

Re:Publish the code PGP style

[Lifthrasir]

You obviously haven't seen my handwriting . . .

Re:Moving?

[twistedcubic]

Try New Zealand:

- Relatively low murder rate
- Democracy in more than name only
- Mostly WASP population
- English Speaking - Technologically forward looking
- Good infrastructure
- No thought police, DMCA or Dumbya.


Is this one of those puzzles where you try to figure out the item in the list which doesn't belong?

Re:Copyright?

[EvanED]

No, see, you're thinking about laws rationally. Stop it.

Re:So let me get this straight...

[denmarkw00t]

Lacky: "But, I am le tired..." MPAA: "Well, take a nap and then FIRE ZE LAWYERS!"

Re:well..

[Grinin]

OK. No one got my South Park reference. I apologize. I would remove the comment if I could :(

Re:Moving?

[veganboyjosh]

by EvilIdler (21087) Alter Relationship on Wednesday February 28, @09:30PM (#18190720) (http://purehatred.org/) Doesn't New Zealand also have some unusually strict laws against certain types of horror movies?

there's a joke in here somewhere.

Re:Not illegal

[Anonymous Coward]

Dream on, kid. Try and put yourself against the entertainment majors. You will LOSE, big time.

Your childish fantasies are one thing, the harsh reality is another.

Re:Turtles all the way down

[mgiuca]

Could God could create a DRM so secure even he himself couldn't crack it?