Man behind software to copy DVDs takes case to Congress

ST. LOUIS -- The creator of DVD-copying software being challenged by Hollywood is taking his case to Capitol Hill, in support of a measure meant to further define consumers' rights under federal copyright laws.

Robert Moore, founder and president of 321 Studios Inc., said Friday he was invited to appear May 12 before the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection. The panel will hear testimony concerning the Digital Media Consumers' Rights Act.

That measure, introduced by Reps. Rick Boucher, D-Va., and John Doolittle, R-Calif., "would reaffirm consumer fair use rights and balance the otherwise one-sided protection afforded copyright owners under current interpretations of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act," 321 said.

The legislation would tweak -- some say defang -- the DMCA, which bars consumers from bypassing anti-piracy measures used to protect DVDs.

Boucher has said the bill would grant buyers of any digital media product unlimited home use -- including copying it by bypassing copy-protection schemes -- provided they don't infringe on copyright or use such media commercially.

Despite Hollywood's legal objections, 321 long has argued its products merely guarantee consumers fair use of the movies they've bought, including backing up expensive copies of children's movies.

Messages left with the Motion Picture Association of America were not immediately returned.

Based in the St. Louis suburb of Chesterfield, 321 has been at legal odds with Hollywood over certain DVD-copying software that movie studios contend violates the 1998 DMCA.

Federal judges in New York and California both have ordered 321 to stop marketing the software, given Hollywood's concerns. The company is appealing those rulings, says it has laid off nearly 300 workers and has been shipping retooled versions that lack a tool for descrambling movies.

"Why should moms and dads be forced to fork over another $20 or $30 every time little Suzie or little Johnny damages their only copy of 'Shrek'?" Moore said. "Who needs that money more, parents or Hollywood?"

In taking his case to Congress, Moore said he hopes to publicly spell out "the unfairness the interpretation of the DMCA is causing on our company and consumers."

On the Net

321 Studios: www.321studios.com

Motion Picture Association of America: www.mpaa.org

MPAA copyright rights: respectcopyrights.org/main.html