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It my be true or it may be myth, but it has always been my understanding that if you own a CD or cassette or VHS, you can make a copy of it for yourself without violating copyrights. You just can't go around legally making copies for others, aside from those folks who convert video from PAL or SECAM into NTSC for folks who bought videos abroad. What are the rules with DVDs? I may be wrong, but I think decryption tools are a no-no in the USA, but I don't see how anyone can make a backup of a DVD without them as the DVDs won't copy without decryption. So, my questions based on US copyright laws are:
1. Is it legal to copy a DVD if you bought the original DVD and it is for your personal use?
2. Is it legal to copy a DVD for someone else, provided they own the original DVD and the copy is for their own personal use (ie make backups for someone who doesn't know how or doesn't own the technology to do it themselves)?
3. If #2 is legal, is it legal to accept money for making the copy (ie compensation for time/blanks) again assuming the other person owns the original (you are not selling movies just collecting a payment for making their backup).
I was just wondering if someone could shed some light on this. It may make a neat permanent forum piece to have a reference of what can and can't be done in each country as many folks are probably wondering where the thresholds are. I make copies of what I own for myself, but I have had others ask me if I would backup their stuff too, and I don't know whether I should or if I should charge them for doing so as it takes forever on my 2.4x drive.
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