In a somewhat surprising move the Recording Industry Association of America has decided to back a number of leading high-tech companies who are opposing the introduction of ‘locks’ in music and video technology to stop consumers making copies of CDs or videos at home. Both the music and film industry have been investing in developing such technology to prevent piracy – and in particular to stop users making copyright material available via the net. But the RIAA has said that they now feel an education campaign about the legal and creative implications of music piracy, run jointly by the record labels and technology companies, is a more suitable way forward.
The move pleases the Consumer Electronics Association in the US which says people should have the right to make copies of CDs or videos for personal use (eg so they can have one copy in the house and one in the car). The Association’s Gary Shapiro told reporters: "We welcome the RIAA's apparent opposition to government mandates that would force consumer electronics manufacturers to insert controls into their products which would limit consumers' home recording and fair use rights."
However their counterparts in the movie biz are still not convinced. The Motion Picture Association of America, which represents all the major US film studios, are still advocating the use of "locking" technology to prevent content being copied or distributed over the internet.