Mod Chips Found Legal In The UK

BaconZombie

Mod Chips Found Legal In The UK
from the mod-away dept

For many years, we've wondered why some folks considered the process of mod chipping to be illegal. After all, if you own a device, why shouldn't you be able to modify it? It's not illegal to modify your computer, so why would it be illegal to modify a game console? Well, thanks to the DMCA in the US, the question wasn't entirely clear -- because console makers use encryption, they consider any modification to be a circumvention of that encryption, and the DMCA has that pesky anti-circumvention clause. In the US, it's become even more bizarre, with federal officials taking up the cause and fining mod chippers while claiming (seriously) that mod chipping was a national security issue.

Luckily, it looks like the courts in Europe are a lot more reasonable about all of this. A few years back, we noted that an Italian court ruled that mod chips were perfectly legal (Update: Well, darn. As a commenter notes, the Italian decision was later overturned). And, now, a tipster alerts us to the news that a UK appeals court has found the same thing, tossing out all of the charges against a mod chip seller, noting that mod chips do not circumvent copy protection systems. Not only that, but the defendant was awarded legal fees. This is a big deal, as the lower court had found the guy, Neil Higgs, guilty for selling mod chips he had imported from Hong Kong. So, now that's Italy and the UK that recognizes modifying your gaming consoles shouldn't be illegal. Anyone else?

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080612/0055131385.shtml

n a landmark historic occasion today 11 June 2008 at the court of appeal criminal division the legal argument that modchips do not circumvent copyright protection was upheld by Judge Justice Jacobs.

The granting of this appeal based on the argument that the copyright infringement has already taken place before the use of a modchip has resulted in the squashing of all 26 counts against MrModchips

The defendant MrModchips was awarded full costs as a result of his successful appeal and offered his most sincerest thanks to his legal team and his many well wishers who had supported his fight for justice in the face of what are now no more than corporate public bullies.

The normally very vocal Michael Rawlinson from ELSPA was strangly unavaliable for comment today.

Mr Rawlinson was originally quoted as saying

Quote:
It marks a milestone in the fight against piracy.
What it does now is mark a milestone in the fight against overzealous independant agencies who have their strings pulled by corporations as opposed to the genuine concerns of the electorate.

What will these mean for modchips in the UK ?????? Truly a disastor for the likes of ELSPA and Trading Standards.

Please provide a link to this news story as the information was given to us exclusively.

News sources from the original case:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage...icle385761.ece
http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/10...dding_bristol/
http://www.p2pnet.net/story/13780
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article....&in_page_id=34

http://www.team-xecuter.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47710