Here's section 14 of NZ's Bill of Rights Act: "Everyone has the right to freedom of expression, including the freedom to seek, receive, and impart information and opinions of any kind in any form."
And now for something completely different: "Digital Technology and the Copyright Act 1994: Policy Recommendations": http://www.med.govt.nz/buslt/int_prop/digital/cabinet/index.html <quote> The Ministry of Justice advises that this raises issues of consistency with section 14 of the Bill of Rights Act (the right to freedom of expression). Proposals intended to ensure that copyright applies equally to works in analogue and digital form are, however, likely to be considered reasonable and justifiable in Bill of Rights terms. </quote> Take a look at the Recommendations section, especially: <quote> It is recommended that the Committee: ... - agree to amend the provision relating to technological protection measures: 1. so that the prohibition against the making, importing, hiring and selling of devices, services or information designed to circumvent "copy protection" be expanded to cover devices, services or information that circumvent technological protection measures that protect all rights provided to copyright owners, including communication, not just copying; and 2. to facilitate the actual exercise of permitted acts where technological measures have been applied - agree to create an offence (of a fine not exceeding $150 000 and/or a term of imprisonment of up to five years) for large scale commercial dealing with devices, services or information designed to circumvent technological protection measures; ... </quote> "Amendments Proposed for Copyright Act" http://www.med.govt.nz/buslt/int_prop/digital/media/minister-20030625.html <quote> The proposed amendments: ... - Prohibit the supply or manufacture of devices, means or information that circumvent technological protection measures, where circumvention could enable infringement of any of the copyright ownerâs exclusive rights, and provide criminal penalties for large scale commercial dealing in circumvention devices, means or information; - Introduce protections for electronic rights management information ("ERMI") that identifies content protected by copyright and the terms and conditions of use, and provide criminal penalties for large scale commercial dealing in copyright material where the dealer knows that ERMI has been removed or altered; ... </quote> Here's the main page (the list of received submissions is interesting): http://www.med.govt.nz/buslt/int_prop/digital/index.html I didn't know about this until very recently. I knew the government was considering adding "fair use" provisions to copyright law, but I didn't realise NZ was about to enact a DMCA equivalent. Y'know... For "fair use" to exist (and it must -- and the government seems to agree), it follows that tools that can circumvent copy protection must be legally and easily available to anyone. But if they are, then copy protection systems are completely and utterly useless and pointless. I also recall a RadioNZ interview earlier this year, in which the Recording Industry Association of NZ argued that we didn't need "fair use" rights because the RIANZ wasn't interested in suing people for taping a purchased CD to listen to on the car cassette deck. Judith Tizard (Associate Minister of Commerce) replied to the effect that it's just plain silly that something that everyone does (making "fair use" of copyrighted material) shouldn't be legal. What to CLUGers think? Does anyone have pointers to mailing lists / groups in NZ keeping an eye on changes to copyright law? -- Timothy Musson - [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~trmusson/
