| Unlike patent system, copyright system is not directly linked with technology, but since it has been created, technology development has been constantly bring new challenges to it. The history of copy right is a process reflecting the development of new technology. The emergence of digital and network technology dramatically affected copyright system, with an unprecedented depth and breadth, not only the the subject matter, the content, the framework of copyright law has changed, even the basic theory of copyright law faces challenges. With its near-zero cost and easy to use, digital replication technology enables individual users to make a mass copy of different copyright works for the first time. The popularity of computers and other digital devices and network technology enables users to access digital works in any corner of the world without leaving home. Once the content was published in digital form, any user can easily access the content for free; more importantly, the combination of digital copying technology and network technology allows users to access pirated contents and later spread them to other users. These features of new technologies tremendously challenged copyright protection. In response to intensified piracy, copyright owners call for "using technology to solve technical problems" slogan, and start using a series of technical measures to limit the access and use of digital works without authorization. Digital Rights Management (DRM) is an integrated system to protect against infringing damage emerging in this context.Using contracts to set access and usage rules and, using technical measures to ensure the implementation of these rules is a common feature of all the DRM systems. With the protect of technical measures, copyright owners can set rules more arbitrarily. In addition to prevent infringement of digital contents, through these rule of contracts and technological measures, copyright owner can achieve interests which can not be obtained under copyright law. In addition, in order to prevent circumvention of technological measures which can defeat the protection function of DRMs, copyright owners seeked to worldwide anti-circumvention rules (include rights management information rules and technical measures rules). The anti-circumvention rules granted new rights to copyright owners, and expanded the legal liability of technology developers and equipment manufacturers. Through the combination of contracts, technical and anti-circumvention rules, DRMs caused a deep impact to the traditional copyright system. First, copyright owners can use DRMs to avoid the application of limitations and exceptions of copyright law, which seriously challenged the balance mechanisms in copyright law. Second, compared with the protection of copyright law, DRMs can better achieve the interests of copyright owners, instead of rely on copyright law, copyright owners are increasingly using DRM systems. Finally, copyright owners use DRMs to expend their exclusive rights, which has dramatically affected users'ability of engaging non-infringement use of copyright works. In addition, DRMs also raised concerns about the freedom of expression, competition, invasion of privacy and other concerns. Thus, there is a urgent need to study on the impact of DRM systems, problems existing in laws related to DRM protection, and the way of restricting DRMs. Based on the characteristics of DRMs, this paper contains four chapters. As a basis for latter research, chapter one studied the characteristics and impacts of DRMs. Based on the integrated parts of DRMs, which are contracts, techonolgies and anti-circumvention rules, chapterâ…¡and chapterâ…¢discuss problems in appliying contract rules to DRM licenses and proposed changes to the anti-circumvention legislation respectively. Chapterâ…£offered the new legal mechanism of restricting. Chapterâ…¤examines legal rules regarding DRM protection in China and suggestions of modifying these rules were introduced. Chapterâ…¤introduces China's relevant laws on restrictions of DRM and give recommendations of modifying and apllying of these laws.Chapterâ… researches on the features of DRMs and its impacts. This chapter shows that, the most important feature of DRMs is the combination of various protective measures, these measures support each other to form a high level protection. Among these measures, contracts set the rules of access and usage, technologies are used to implement these rules; and, technologies and contracts is mutual support and mutual protection. In addition, the anti-circumvention rules provides protection on contracts enforcement and technical measures. Rights management information protect against deleting and modifying of metadata; technical measures legislation protect against circumvention. This paper further stated that, as copyright owners'private relief measures, together anti-circumvention rules, contracts and technical measures have the potential of replacing the traditional role of copyright law. And the abuse of these private relieves caused some serious impact which affected the implementation of copyright limitations and exceptions.The paper points out, DRMs likely to undermine the theoretical basis of copyright law, in the future, perhaps the role of copyright law will change directions to protect users' rights and public interests.Chapterâ…¡explores the DRM licensing agreements. DRM-related agreements contain mainly usage license agreement and technology licensing agreements, technology licensing agreement often overlooked by commentators. This chapter examines possibilities and difficulties in applying contract law and antitrust law to restrict DRM licenses. Bisides misuse doctrine in the U.S. was introduced. There are several difficulties in applying the basic principles of contract law to DRM licenses agreement:the scope of users' rights is not clear, there are difficulties in defining the public interest, the lack of mandatory rules regarding copyright restrictions and exceptions, and the basic principles of contract law itself is ambiguous. This chapter also analyzes antitrust issues regarding DRM technology licensing and patent pool licensing. For the U.S. misuse doctrine, the author pointed out that, based on its inherent characteristics, traditional principles of abuse is difficult to effectively maintain limitations and exeptions in copyright law.Chapter III examines anti-circumvention rule in different countries, and give some proposal on modifying some of these provisions. Anti-circumvention rules created new right which is totally different from copyright, and established a new cause-of-action. In most of the countries, liablilities under the anti-circumvention rules is apart from copyright infringement, some scholars believe that anti-circumvention rules had in fact granted copyright owners a "para-copyright." In addition, the anti-circumvention rules also expanded the contributory infringement liability of technology developers and equipment manufacturers, and the anti-circumvention rules enable copyright owner to expand their exclusive rights to markets of related technologies and products. As the strict anti-circumvention rules is driven by the U.S. copyright industries, many limitations and exceptions in national anti-circumvention rules are considerably narrow, and the broad ban on circumvention devices make it difficult to realize copyright limitations and exceptions. This paper suggests a limited scope of application of anti-circumvention rules, and provides more limitations and exceptions under these rules.Chapter IV talks about the suggestions of foreign scholars on restriction of DRM and maintain the original balance of copyright law, and made a comparative study of these proposals. These proposals are forming DRM technology with law, the institution measure, and the proposal of the an technical measures abuse dictorine. By studying these proposals, the paper pointed out that, there is no perfect solution to moderate the tension between DRMs and copyright limitations and exceptions, combine different solutions together may be a more sensible way. The author appreciate the technology measure abuse doctrine, as it can serve to set the boundary of rights of technology measures as well as copyright.Chapter V examines law regarding restrictions of DRM in China and put forward the proposed modification. The paper points out, China's anti-circumvention rules' scope is too broad and exceptions under these rules are too narrow, the lack of a number of important exceptions will result in the suppression of development of technology and the users' ability to engage in non-infringing use. The cause and act under the anti-circumvention rules' should take account the substantial copyright infringement; additional exceptions should be provided; and the rules should made clear that circumvent device should be accessible to the beneficiaries of these exeptions. There are some obstacles in applying Laws regarding restricting DRM licenses, so the effects of these laws are limited.In conclusion, the author pointed out that the introducion of anti-circumvention rules into copyright law is one of the main reasons causing confusion. Any proposed external regulation can only alleviate but can not solve the the abuse problems of DRMs fundamentally, to review anti-circumvention rules, so that copyright law can return to the original balance, is the fundamental way to solve this problem.
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