Washington - U.S. Reps. Rick Boucher (D-Va.) and John Doolittle (R-Calif.) have  introduced a new version of their legislation that would enshrine the traditional rights of consumers to "fair use" of copyrighted works into law, which the lawmakers see as eroding in the digital age.

"Historically, the nation's copyright laws have reflected a carefully calibrated balanced between the rights of copyright owners and the rights of the users of copyrighted material," Boucher said, in a statement.

"The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) dramatically tilted the copyright balance toward complete copyright protection at the expense of the public's right to fair use."

Unlike two previous similar bills that failed to gain traction, the FAIR USE Act introduced on Wednesday removes a fair use defense when someone circumvents the copyright protections on a digital work.

It instead codifies six exemptions suggested by the Librarian of Congress, and adds several additional exemptions.

The bill would also limit the damages that may be sought for "contributory infringement, inducement of infringement, vicarious liability or other indirect infringement," and includes a "narrowly crafted provision codifying the Supreme Court's Betamax decision to eliminate any uncertainty about a potential negative impact on the Court's holding in the Grokster case."

Supporters of the bill include a number of library groups, the Consumer Electronics Association and the Computer & Communications Industry Association.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) said in a statement that the bill would "repeal the DMCA and legalize hacking."

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/ytsd9o (Boucher press release)

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070228-8948.html

http://blog.wired.com/music/2007/02/boucher_and_doo.html

http://www.riaa.com