14 DAY TRIAL // In the entire world, measures for preventing duplication of copyrighted audio/video content are growing in proportions and the sanctions for such crimes include fines and even jail sentences. Despite the general trend, the French judges have decided to withdraw from stores David Lynch's "Mulholland Drive".
The Court of Appeals decided at the end of last week that software solutions used to prevent illegal duplication of a DVD violate the privacy of users.
This decision could represent a very important blow for the DVD industry which installed protection measures for every disc launched. The losses resulted from illegal duplication of audio and video discs amount to millions of dollars.
"According to the same decision, over 80% of the DVDs on the French market are using illegal copying prevention methods", says Julien Dourgnon, spokesman of the UFC-Que Choisir, the organization that filed the lawsuit and whose purpose is to protect consumers.
The stores that retailed the DVDs will not be forced into returning the merchandise that has become illegal over night. Most probable, the stores will have the obligation of checking if the retailed CDs or DVDs are protected against duplication, and if so, to refuse the shipments.