Modification of software functionality is only allowed for motor vehicles. The Copyright Office has already reinstated exemptions that permit circumvention for diagnosis and repair of computer programs - but limited to smartphones, home appliances, and motor vehicles. The Copyright Office has grouped current proposals related to tinkering into three classes.
As computers are integrated into more devices, the freedom to tinker has taken on increased significance, while also raising concerns around computerized devices that impact health, safety, privacy, and security. Tinkering with our devices - for repairs, to improve performance, for interoperability, or just to learn - is core to why many of us became developers. Proposals exploring the freedom to tinker
The Copyright Office has categorized new proposed exemptions into 17 classes, with eight of particular interest to the developer ecosystem highlighted below. So if a tool were “primarily designed” for circumventing DRM, even if that circumvention was for an exempted or non-infringing purpose, the exemptions do not make it lawful to publish or share the circumventing portions of that tool.
In practice, because each person needs to create the tools from scratch, this means that those who are less technically savvy may not be able to take advantage of the exemptions. Second, even when circumvention is permitted, publishing or sharing tools that enable circumvention are not. First, the exemptions are not automatically renewed: the petitions must be refiled every three years. The exemption process has two limitations. Developer stories are critical to educating the Copyright Office about how DMCA anti-circumvention impacts software development and innovation. Current exemptions address these topics, and the Copyright Office is considering proposals to expand them to broader use cases. Without the exemption process, circumvention for some security research, accessibility, or device repair would not be permitted by law. The exemption process gives a path to permit circumvention for uses that are permitted because they are not copyright infringement. You can find more information about submitting comments to the Copyright Office here. Though all proposed exemptions are somewhat relevant to developers - DRM and other technical measures are typically implemented in software - this post highlights eight classes of proposed exemptions that are likely to be of particular interest to the larger software development ecosystem. Developer input matters: the Copyright Office pays attention to comments about the real-world impact DRM has on developers’ ability to lawfully use software and other copyrighted materials. Copyright Office is currently seeking comments from the public on proposed exemptions to the DMCA §1201 that prohibits circumventing “technological measures” - like encryption or digital rights management (DRM) - that prevent copying or accessing a copyrighted work. DMCA rules are under review, and you have an opportunity to help shape the anti-circumvention landscape. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is a 22-year old United States law meant to strike a complicated balance between art, code, and speech on the net - impacting users of platforms like GitHub.
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