SubscribeJailbreaking may no longer be the appropriate term for downloading unapproved but legally acquired applications onto Apple’s iPhones, in the wake of new rules announced Monday by the U.S. government. The Library of Congress’ Copyright Office, which, every three years, reviews exemptions to the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) prohibiting unauthorized uses of certain products, has issued a new ruling that jailbreaking is legal.
The ruling, which could have a substantial impact on Apple’s ability to control what goes onto its devices, says a three-year exemption will be granted to “computer programs that enable wireless telephone handsets to execute software applications, where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of such applications, when they have been lawfully obtained, with computer programs on the telephone handset.”
Other Exemptions
The librarian of Congress, on the recommendation of the register of copyrights, announced which classes of work are exempt to the “prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works,” as specified in the DMCA.
The specified classes are exempt, and therefore legal, for the next three-year period. In addition to the exemption for jailbreaking, the new rules include audiovisual works in a college or university that are video-clip compilations intended for educational use, computer programs and video games in obsolete formats where circumvention of technical protections is needed for preservation purposes, and computer programs that are protected by obsolete dongles.
In addition, books in the fast-growing e-book category can have their technical protections legally overridden when they prevent either accurate rendering by screen readers or the read-aloud function, both of which might be needed by people with disabilities.
Firmware in telephone handsets can also now legally be broken “when circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of lawfully connecting to a wireless telephone communication network.” This exemption could impact the growing…
Via NewsFactor
Yacine.org: Library of Congress Says iPhone Jailbreaking Is Legal http://bit.ly/duoIct
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