A federal court has ruled that privately held 321 Studios must stop making software that allows users to copy DVDs, handing Hollywood's movie studios a big victory in their ongoing battle against copyright piracy.
St. Louis-based 321 Studios said it would appeal the ruling by Judge Susan Illston of US District Court in San Francisco.
Illston barred 321 from selling its DVD copying software within one week. As part of its appeal, 321 said it would seek to stay the ruling so it can continue selling its DVDXCOPY program.
"This court enjoins 321, as of seven days from the issuance of this order, from manufacturing, distributing, or otherwise trafficking in any type of DVD circumvention software," Illston wrote in her opinion.
At stake in the legal battle, the studios argued, were potentially billions of dollars in lost revenue if DVD copying software such as 321's DVDXCOPY were allowed to be sold.
The studios and their representative, The Motion Picture Association of America, claim the industry loses $3 billion a year from the copying and resale of analogue videotapes.
The industry is worried it could lose even more if digital copies of movies are allowed to proliferate more widely on black markets and on the Internet.
The Motion Picture Association, or MPAA, said the ruling sent a "clear message" to companies to stop violating laws by selling software that gets around copy protection.
"Companies have a responsibility to develop products that operate within the letter of the law and do not expose their customers to illegal activities," MPAA Chairman Jack Valenti said in a statement.
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