Clearing Clearplay’s Name: Tracing the Legitimization of Digital Movie Editing Technology

Abstract

By passing the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005 (“FECA”) on February 1, 2005, Congress resolved an ongoing dispute over whether non-copyright holders may commercially edit movies for home viewing. This Act contains a section called the Family Movie Act, which states that software that enables viewers to mute or skip parts of a movie does not violate the motion picture studios’ copyrights. FECA essentially declares that the handful of companies that develop this software to filter out content have won the battle in conference rooms, court, and the Capitol. This Note traces the history of the edited movie industry and its fight for legitimacy, with special focus on the manufacturers of software that filters out language, violence, and sex during movies. Section II focuses on the development of the edited movie industry, Section III on a recently resolved civil case between edited movie companies and movie directors and studios, and Section IV on resolving the legal issues before the court in this civil case. Section V covers the development and passage of FECA and criticizes the way Congress has handled the edited movie debate while proposing a different approach.