I am not sure where this question should be asked but here goes anyway. I have copied many VHS tapes to DVD of people's home videos but recently a client asked about transferring a VHS movie tape (copyright) to DVD. Now I am relatively sure this is legal if the client did this themselves (fair use or something like that) but what if I do it for them. Does anybody know the legality of this in Canada (definitively) or have a link to read up on this kind of stuff? I don't want to do this and have menacing people in dark shades show up in a few weeks.
i doubt you will be tracked by "people in dark shades" just for transferring a few tapes to DVD. It is legal to own backup copies of purchased music and videos, so if you make a copy of the tape and give both the copy and original back to the owner, you should be in the clear. on a more technical note, copyrighted dvds have copy guard macrovision protection on them. You will need to get around this somehow. They make devices for about $25 that you pass the video signal through which will remove the protection
Well it will probably be more than a few. I think it is legal to make backups of movies that you own but I have read in a few places that it is not legal to pay someone to do it for you (in the USA atleast). I guess I will try and find a law forum (if there is such a thing).
In Canada, you have less trouble than in the US. Make the backup. Charge for your time, and the blank media. No problems, it's legal. You CANNOT however, make a copy to keep for yourself, nor make ANY profit from the CONTENTS of either the source or the burn.
