of the Northern District of California Federal Court will
hear arguments on Russian software firm Elcomsoft’s motion
to dismiss the criminal charges leveled against it under
likely unconstitutional provisions of the Digital Millenium
Copyright Act (DMCA). Elcomsoft is charged with offering a
tool that circumvents the copy protection in Adobe eBooks,
allowing fair, noninfringing use by eBook purchasers.
Although the government has largely dropped its charges
against Elcomsoft employee Dmitry Sklyarov, the company
remains under criminal prosecution, presenting a chance for
the court to look closely into the constitutional problems
with the DMCA. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)
filed an amicus brief in support of Elcomsoft as did over 35
law professors.
The hearing is open to the public, and the EFF would like to
see a strong showing of support for Elcomsoft and opposition
to the DMCA’s unconstitutionality. Attendees should dress
respectfully to keep from disrupting the legal proceedings.
When: 9:00 a.m., April 1, 2002
[Note: Despite the date, this is an actual hearing.]
Where: United States Courthouse, 280 South 1st Street,
San Jose, California, 95113
Courtroom: 4th Floor, Courtroom 6
Links to Elcomsoft case archive:
http://www.eff.org/IP/DMCA/US_v_Sklyarov
For this advisory:
http://www.eff.org/IP/DMCA/US_v_Sklyarov/20020328_eff_elcom_pr.html
About EFF:
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading civil
liberties organization working to protect rights in the
digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF actively encourages and
challenges industry and government to support free
expression, privacy, and openness in the information
society. EFF is a member-supported organization and
maintains one of the most-linked-to websites in the world at
http://www.eff.org/.
