In the United Kingdom burning CDs and DVDs for personal use is common. Now the ministers of the UK are being urged now to modify copyright laws to allow users to legally rip CDs and DVDs! The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) wants users to have a "private right to copy" digital content. The IPPR acknowledged that the music and film industries are justified in battling illegal file sharing. But the IPPR argues that making copies for personal use does not have significant impact on copyright holders.
Millions of Britons are violating current copyright laws by ripping CDs onto their MP3 players and/or PCs. Currently, Britons are violating an outdated 300-year-old law when copying CDs and DVDs. The British Phonographic Institute has already stated that it will not pursue its rights to bring private copying cases against users if the copying truly is for private purposes only.
An independent research study reports that around 59 percent of Britons believe copying CDs and DVDs to other devices is legal. The chairman of the culture, media and sport select committee inquiry admits that he and his children are in violation of the law. "My own view is that the current laws are unsatisfactory as it is difficult to say to consumers that this bit of the law matters and this bit doesn"t matter," Conservative MP John Whittingdale was quoted as saying.
Should the ministers of the UK legalize ripping CDs and DVDs?
-Enan Hawk