Advanced Copyright Issues on the Internet - Fenwick & West LLP

Streambox to create versions of its products that worked with RealNetworks’ copy protectiontechnology), to stop distributing Streambox Ferret, and to pay an undisclosed sum of money. 679(iii) Universal City Studios, Inc. v. ReimerdesIn this case, the plaintiffs were copyright holders who distributed motion picturesencoded in a proprietary system for the encryption and decryption of data contained on digitalversatile disks (DVDs) known as the Content Scramble System (CSS). The CSS technology waslicensed to manufacturers of DVDs, who used it to encrypt the content of copyrighted motionpictures distributed in the DVD format. The plaintiffs filed suit under the DMCA againstvarious defendants whom the plaintiffs alleged violated the anti-circumvention provisions of theDMCA by posting on their websites the source code of a program named “DeCSS,” which wasable to defeat DVD encryption using the CSS technology and enable viewing of DVD movies onunlicensed players and the making of digital copies of DVD movies. 680 The plaintiffs sought apreliminary and permanent injunction to prevent the defendants from posting DeCSS on theirWeb site and from linking their site to others that posted DeCSS. 681On Jan. 20, 2000, the court entered a preliminary injunction against the defendants,restraining them from posting on any website or otherwise making available DeCSS or any othertechnology, product or service primary designed or produced for the purpose of, or having onlylimited commercially significant purposes or use other than, circumventing CSS, or marketed bydefendants or others acting in concert with them for use in circumventing CSS. 682 In an opinionissued Feb. 2, 2000, the court set forth its findings of fact and conclusions of law supporting thepreliminary injunction. 683On Aug. 17, 2000, after a bench trial, the court issued a permanent injunction against thedefendants. 684 The court ruled that DeCSS was clearly a means of circumventing CSS, atechnological access control measure, that it was undisputed that DeCSS was designed primarilyto circumvent CSS, and therefore that DeCSS constituted a prima facie violation of Section1201(a)(2). 685 The court rejected the defendants’ argument that CSS did not “effectivelycontrol” access to the plaintiffs’ copyrighted works because it was based on a 40-bit encryptionkey, which the defendants argued was a weak cipher. The court noted that Section679680681682683684685“Early DMCA Lawsuit Settled, Streambox Will Modify Products to Prevent Digital Copying,” BNA’sElectronic Commerce & Law Report (Oct. 11, 2000) at 1019.Universal City Studios Inc. v. Reimerdes, 111 F. Supp. 2d 294 (S.D.N.Y. 2000).Id. at 303.Preliminary Injunction, Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Reimerdes, No. 00 Civ. 0277 (LAK) (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 20,2000) 2.Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Reimerdes, 82 F. Supp. 2d 211 (S.D.N.Y. 2000).Universal City Studios Inc. v. Reimerdes, 111 F. Supp. 2d 294 (S.D.N.Y. 2000). An amended final judgmentwas entered by the court on Aug. 23, 2001, enjoining the defendants from posting DeCSS on their web site andfrom knowingly linking their web site to any other web site on which DeCSS was posted. Universal CityStudios Inc. v. Reimerdes, 111 F. Supp. 2d 346 (S.D.N.Y. 2000).111 F. Supp. 2d at 317-19.- 164 -