The Motion Picture Association, which represents six Hollywood movie studios, announced those studios are suing RealNetworks Inc. for releasing software Tuesday that allows consumers to copy DVDs onto their computer’s hard drive.
The studios are asking for a temporary restraining order saying the downloadable software Real DVD violates the Digital Millennium Copyright Act by bypassing the copyright protection that’s built into DVDs.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association disagrees with that interpretation.
“Contrary to what the studios are saying, the DMCA was not intended to allow the movie industry to block a competitive business model. This is the same crowd that said the videocassette recorder would be the death of them,” said Ed Black, President & CEO of CCIA. “Real’s innovative product isn’t what the DMCA is supposed to prevent, and if it does, it will be another piece of evidence that the DMCA’s anti-circumvention provisions are fundamentally anti-consumer.”