CTA, CCA, Others Seeking DMCA Exemptions for Auto Software, Security Research, E-Books

Civil liberties groups, computer scientists and library and tech associations asked the Copyright Office to renew exemptions for jailbreaking, security research, e-books and other device software to circumvent technological protection measures (TPMs), in the latest triennial rulemaking process under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Petitions for renewal are in docket #COLC-2017-0007, comments due Sept. 13. That's when petitions for new exemptions are also due. CTA and others jointly sought renewal of an exemption for vehicle software. CTA said members invested in vehicle aftermarket communications and other products and don't want "artificial constraints on entry and competition." The Competitive Carriers Association, which includes Dish Network, Nokia, Sprint, T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular, supported an exemption for Classes 11-15 to ensure "dominant providers cannot facially restrict consumer device choice, and cannot monopolize particular wireless devices ... by limiting them to just one network." The unlocking capability allows consumers to switch providers and not buy a new device, CCA said. It said the exemption has been granted in previous rulemakings with "no significant opposition in 2015." Consumers Union commented such an exemption would allow consumers to unlock their mobile devices to use "as they see fit." The Center for Democracy & Technology said security researchers need the exemption to find and fix software vulnerabilities on consumer devices. Section 1201's prohibition on TPM circumvention is "often a legal impediment or source of uncertainty and risk" for researchers, who also could face liability under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the group said. Former Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer Ed Felten and others filed a similar request. The Electronic Frontier Foundation said exemptions are needed to circumvent access controls to videogames and consoles to restore functionality after a publisher terminates support and for jailbreaking mobile devices. The American Library Association and others representing the visually impaired sought an exemption to distribute e-books, "so uncontroversial and well-established that it has become the archetypical example of an exemption that should be uncontroversially renewed."