On July 6, U.S. District Judge Richard Matsch granted a motion brought by the major studios permanently barring four companies — CleanFlicks, Family Flix, CleanFilms and Play It Clean Video — from producing, promoting, renting or selling unauthorized copies of mechanically-altered films. In granting the injunction, Judge Matsch agreed that the Copyright Act bars CleanFlicks’ copying of motion pictures, and rejected fair use defenses by the defendants. In ruling that these parties are engaged in copyright infringement, and enjoining their activities, Judge Matsch specifically held: “What is protected are the creator's rights to protect its creation in the form in which it was created.”
The DGA was joined in this effort by 16 of its members, including President Michael Apted, National Vice President Steven Soderbergh, Robert Altman, Taylor Hackford, Curtis Hanson, Norman Jewison, John Landis, Michael Mann, Phillip Noyce, Brad Silberling, Betty Thomas, Irwin Winkler, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Robert Redford and Sydney Pollack. Apted noted the ruling vindicated the Guild's position that such unauthorized editing is not permitted under copyright law. “As creators of films, we oppose giving anyone the ability to alter in any way they choose, for any purpose, and for profit, the content of a film that we have made, often after many years of work.” CleanFlicks and the other companies unsuccessfully argued that they were permitted to edit the films under the “fair use” provisions of the Copyright Act.
While the ruling was a victory for directors, studios and copyright holders, it does not affect technology that allows consumers to electronically edit a film by skipping or muting portions while leaving the original DVD intact, which was permitted by Congress under the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005. The DGA is currently monitoring the impact of that legislation.
