[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 146 (Wednesday, October 14, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2166]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT

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                               speech of

                           HON. RICK BOUCHER

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, October 12, 1998

  Mr. BOUCHER. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in support of the 
conference report on H.R. 2281.
  Through this legislation, we extend new protections to copyright 
owners to help them guard against the theft of their works in the 
digital era. At the same time, we preserve the critical balance in the 
copyright law between the rights of copyright owners and users by also 
including strong fair use and other provisions for the benefits of 
libraries, universities, and information consumers generally.
  I am pleased to advise my colleagues that many of the compromises 
achieved in this legislation reflect the work of the Commerce 
Committee. I want to underscore my appreciation for the leadership of 
Chairman Bliley and Ranking Member Dingell in successfully crafting 
balanced legislation both in the Committee and as conferees.
  I want to highlight briefly several provisions addressing fair use 
and the effect of this legislation on consumer electronics devices, 
computers and other technologies. These provisions are fundamental to 
the balance that the conferees have achieved in this measure.
  First, the conferees included a provision which ensures that the 
legislation's prohibition against circumvention of copy protection 
technologies in digital works does not thwart the exercise of fair use 
and other rights by all users. This safeguard requires that the 
Librarian of Congress, in consultation with the Register of Copyrights 
and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration of 
the Commerce Department, conduct proceedings periodically to determine 
if these rights are being adversely affected by copy protection 
technologies in the digital age. If the Librarian of Congress 
determines that noninfringing uses of certain classes of copyright 
works are, or are likely to be, adversely affected, then the measure's 
prohibition against circumvention of copy protection technologies shall 
not apply to users with respect to those works.
  Second, with respect to consumer electronics devices and other 
equipment, the conferees included a ``no mandate'' provision which 
should reassure manufacturers of future digital telecommunications, 
consumer electronics and computing products that they have the design 
freedom to choose parts and components in designing and building new 
equipment. Read together with other provisions of the measure and other 
parts of the relevant legislative history, the ``no mandate'' provision 
confirms that Congress does not intend to require equipment 
manufacturers to design new digital telecommunications equipment, 
consumer electronics and computing products to respond to any 
particular copy protection technology.
  Third, the conferees also clarified that manufacturers, retailers and 
professional services can make ``playability'' adjustments to their 
equipment without fear of liability. Recognizing that, whether 
introduced unilaterally or after a multi-industry development process, 
a copy protection technology might cause playability problems, the 
conferees explicitly stated that makers or servicers of consumer 
electronics, telecommunications or computing products can mitigate 
these problems without being deemed to have violated the measure's 
prohibition against circumvention of a copy protection technology. 
Equipment manufacturers should thus be able to make product adjustments 
without fear of liability, and retailers and professional servicers 
should not feel burdened with the threat of litigation in repairing 
videocassette recorders and other popular products for their customers.
  Taken together, these provisions demonstrate that the legislation is 
not intended to diminish core fair use and other rights that have 
always been recognized in our copyright law. These provisions confirm 
that the measure does not limit the development and use of consumer 
electronics, telecommunications, and computer products used by 
libraries, universities, schools and consumers everyday for perfectly 
legitimate purposes.
  In short, with these and the other changes made to preserve the 
rights of information consumers, the conferees have produced a bill 
worthy of our support. I commend their efforts in achieving this 
careful compromise.

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