[svlug] EFF files Felten lawsuit

[Seth David Schoen]

Those who attended the meeting this evening heard me announce that the
EFF had filed the first-ever affirmative constitutional challenge to the
DMCA, in a lawsuit by Professor Ed Felten of Princeton University
against the RIAA, SDMI Foundation, Verance, and John Ashcroft.

Felten is joined in the lawsuit by his colleagues from Princeton and
Rice, and by the USENIX Association, sponsor of the security
conferences where Felten's team intends to publish its work.  They are
represented by a team of EFF staff attorneys and outside attorneys
from Ohio, Massachusetts, California, and New Jersey, all with major
civil liberties experience.

Press release:

http://www.eff.org/Legal/Cases/Felten_v_RIAA/20010606_eff_felten_pr.html

Complaint:

http://www.eff.org/Legal/Cases/Felten_v_RIAA/20010606_eff_complaint.html

Background:

http://www.eff.org/Legal/Cases/Felten_v_RIAA/

FAQ:

http://www.eff.org/Legal/Cases/Felten_v_RIAA/faq_felten.html

Felten's project page:

http://www.cs.princeton.edu/sip/sdmi/


There has been a fair amount of press coverage already, including
slashdot, Reuters, AP, ZDNet, CNET, and NPR; you can expect stories
from several major newspapers in the next few days.  RIAA also issued
a brief statement, and EFF issued a response to it.

I like this case, and the legal team handling it, a whole lot.

I think this announcement fit well with the presentation by Jon Calas
about the effects of the DMCA on security research.  In fact, I
couldn't have asked for better timing. :-)

At the meeting, I asked SVLUG members to show support for this
litigation, and other EFF projects, by joining and contibuting to EFF.

http://www.eff.org/support/

You can contributing with a credit card or in many other ways.  EFF is
largely member-supported, and its high-profile DMCA litigation is
costing over a million dollars per year.  Although the EFF receives some
institutional support, contributions from individuals are an important
part of its budget.  Without them, EFF would not be able to take on
cases like this.

(With the addition of this case, EFF is now simultaneously litigating
DMCA cases against both the MPAA and RIAA -- with the Department of
Justice as an additional opposing party in each case!)

If you can't give money, there's a lot else that would help, including
publicity.

-- 
Seth David Schoen <schoen at loyalty.org>  | And do not say, I will study when I
Temp.  http://www.loyalty.org/~schoen/  | have leisure; for perhaps you will
down:  http://www.loyalty.org/   (CAF)  | not have leisure.  -- Pirke Avot 2:5