Monday, October 6,2008 @ 7:30am
Judge temporarily blocks RealDVD sales
A judge today issued a temporary ban on sales of RealNetworks' RealDVD as part of proceedings for major movie studios' copyright lawsuit against the video software firm. The move, which officially lasts until Tuesday, is primarily to give the judge an opportunity to review filings made in the case but may be extended if more time is needed or the court decides to support a longer injunction against sales until the end of the case.
Real has successfully requested a move for the case to a Northern District of California court away from a Central District court, where the movie studios operate and where Real argued it wouldn't be likely to receive a fair trial.
The ruling sets the stage for the controversial lawsuit, which was started under the assertion that RealDVD is illegally circumventing copyright protection by letting DVD owners put titles on their hard drives. Real has responded by noting that it doesn't technically shed the CSS protection, unlike many ripping utilities, and applies its own copyright guards to prevent users from making bootleg copies.