Legality of making backup copies of game disks

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I have a question that may be considered inappporiate for the boards here. If so, I apologise.

Since the time back in the days of the Apple II, I've made it a point to always play on backup copies of game disks for when accidents happen. I've dropped, scratched, and stepped on to know it's a question of when, not if.


Some of the games I have are copy protected on some of the disks, and I'm unable to copy them. One example is Icewind Dale II disc 1 (I think, it might be two, I haven't tried in a while), and Baldur's Gate II disc 2.

A friend of mine showed me a program called Bit Torrent and that I could find cracked warez copies of those game disks. My question is, is it ok legally and ethically for me to obtain such an image file for the game disks that I was unable to copy and use it to make a backup CD? That used to be ok a long time ago, and I even own a program called "Copy II Plus" which was a commercial product for the purpose of copying copy protected disks on the Apple II. However, I heard something about the Digital Mellenium COpyright Act making such a program illegal.
Some of the games in question, such as Baldur's Gate II I'm not the origional buyer of, but I do legally own the origional discs (though not always the manuals or boxes, which were lost). I simply want to play on copies so that if something happens to the CD-which is more likely than I care to admit-I haven't lost the abliity to play the games. After all, they require you to have the CDs available to play them.

Also to note, I don't plan on downloading all the discs, just the copy protected ones.

[ October 28, 2005, 22:11: Message edited by: Taluntain ]

 

Ethically yes, legally depends. How so?

It's perfectly legal to make back-up copies. It's a right. Therefore, in a strict interpretation of this right, copy protection should be illegal.

You see... but it's bad for you to violate corporate rights, while it's perfectly OK for corporations to violate your rights. Therefore, going around copy protection is starting to be illegal now because lawmakers, enforcers and judges are starting to eat from corporate hand. Ideally, if you break or use up your old disks, you should buy a new copy of the game. Oh, pardon, a new licence.

If you have lost your manuals and CD-keys and all such, it may already be hard even with original disks. If you download warez and can't prove that your original disks are original, you may find yourself in even more of a trouble if they get to you. Somehow, they no longer have to prove you have illegal copies but they are allowed to start off from a blanket prohibition to use the game unless licenced, therefore it's up to you to prove it's legal, in the most extreme cases.

Can't help you more because details differ from country to country and probably from state to state in the US, too.

 

Glad I checked back in my insomnia.

I should clarify that I'm in the United States, and in Illinois. I thought the mention of the Digital millenium copyright act implied the U.S.

The reason I mentioned I wasn't the origional owner is because quite often after having a game for a few years, I find that I don't play it much. I often trade the disks and stuff to a friend who gives me one of his own. With any other product from books to CDs to video tapes, this is fine, but I've heard stuff about software LICENSES not being transferrable (moslty in reguards to MicroSoft products) even if you now own the origionals. Mind you, this practice used to be perfectly acceptable and is IMHO no different from swapping books or lending them, something that I also do.

 

Warez: no. Copying it yourself from your own disc: specifically mentioned as okay. I personally use just such backup discs to play the game, which keeps my original game discs safe. If the backup blows, I can just make another one. But downloading it from somewhere else is not okay. And I have copied BGII disc 2 (NOT copy-protected), so maybe you should try them again.

 

Depends of your point of view:

If you support RIAA/MPAA/etc, then you will view all copies as illegal. End of discussion, all related topics banned, and all critisizers are banned/sued too.

OR:

If you are a innocent little consumer like the rest of us, you understand that "what they don't know, can't hurt." Thus you don't need to worry about law. Do as you see fit.

 

Speaking from a strictly legal standard, you are permitted to make one and only one backup copy of a software program.

Licenses are transferrable. Your friend does have to destroy every copy that he has of the program, however.