14 DAY TRIAL // The UK copyright law is getting an update soon, and making copies of CDs, ebooks or any other media bought for personal use will no longer be illegal.
Although everyone was probably already doing this, the change of law should give people some peace of mind.
According to the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), the changes will take place starting with June 1, 2014. Up until now, it was illegal to copy the contents of a CD for backup or to put the music on a mobile device. Changing the format of an ebook to fit for another device was also illegal.
Regardless, this will all change from now on and a more common-sense law will take the place of the current one. However, something that will continue to be restricted is making CD copies for friends and family. If you want to do such a thing, you must make sure to delete any personal copies in your possession.
In light of the new changes that will be implemented soon, the IPO admits that its DRM is too restrictive. However, it’s always been possible to file a complaint with the Secretary of State.
This could be done by anyone that thinks the law is too strict. The Secretary of State has the right to give directions to copyright owners to enable the complainant to benefit from the content.
Of course, if this applies, there will be some limitations, because movie studios and music producers could soon see themselves compelled to make their content easier to access to certain individuals in order for them to copy their discs for personal use.
Although this is a possibility, the Secretary of State would need to seek to “establish whether the parties have reached any voluntary agreements permitting the complainant to rely on the exception,” the file reads.
The copyright law will suffer additional changes as well. For instance, it will no longer be illegal to use quotes from other people’s work. While this was already possible for critical works, reviews or news reporting, it will now become possible for everyone else to do this as well.
Caricatures, pastiches and parodies are also allowed in the UK according to the new rewritten law. “Fair dealing” is the key concept here, however, as the legality of the work depends on each individual case.
All in all, the UK is becoming more relaxed about copyright in the context of an international discussion about the limitations of such rights and how they can and should be used.