Re:Illegal prime
by jfager on Monday January 11, 2010 @12:18PM
(#1045482)
The provision in the DMCA that this addresses says you can't make or distribute anything that is designed or primarily intended for breaking DRM tech.
A DVD decryption algorithm obviously is designed and primarily intended to circumvent DRM, and a prime number obviously is not. The fact that the former can be expressed as the latter effectively means the provision is either absurdly lenient or absurdly draconian. It's a law that leaves you in the dark as to what you're actually allowed to do without the threat of prosecution or legal harassment.
A DVD decryption algorithm obviously is designed and primarily intended to circumvent DRM, and a prime number obviously is not. The fact that the former can be expressed as the latter effectively means the provision is either absurdly lenient or absurdly draconian. It's a law that leaves you in the dark as to what you're actually allowed to do without the threat of prosecution or legal harassment.