This article at Wired.com is of vital importance to anyone that considers their rights at least as important as Hollywood’s or the recording industry’s. Basically they are trying to sneak new laws quietly though the Senate that in many ways totally changes your rights with regards to music and video.
For example, how do you like the idea of not being able to fast forward though ads and other promotional material without it being a crime? Or perhaps having the DOJ come after you for using iTunes or a file trading program.
If you have any regard for your personal freedom, and you live in the US, it’s in your own best interest to write to your relevant politician to register your objection for this sort of underhanded action. They have lost a couple of ground breaking cases, so now they are trying to change the law to suit them. Consider that when we used VCR’s, we were able to fast forward the copyright notices (which we have all seen a hundred times or more and don’t need to see again.) as well as the previews and such. We already can’t fast forward our DVD’s past the copyright notices, and now they want to make it illegal to fast forward previews and other ads as well? They are slowly eroding all of the rights we took for granted. Don’t let them.
Franki