Mr. Angus, I agree that the WIPO treaties permit much more flexibility than is in this bill. We agree with that. There's no problem under the treaties about having exceptions as long as they meet the three-step test and other provisions of law, so we can allow for fair dealing and for backup copies as long as they don't impair the market or cause economic harm. We can allow for all of those things, and we can allow consumers to protect themselves.
You mentioned the example of Sony. Much more recently than 1982, just three or four years ago, Sony famously issued this CD with the so-called rootkit on it that destroyed millions of people's computers. It didn't just phone home; it went further. It crippled a number of people's computers. The irony was that under the U.S. law at the time, it was actually illegal to try to repair your computer, because you would be interfering unduly with the TPM. That's an extreme example. Obviously corporations don't wish to do that in the marketplace, but it happened.
Yes, we can have these exceptions, and those who say we can't are simply wrong in law, both international and domestic. The WIPO treaties have a great deal of flexibility, and if you read the detailed analysis, the legislative history of the WIPO treaties, which has been set out quite well in Professor Michael Geist's book, that's very clear. We can have those exceptions that allow users to do something that would otherwise be infringing.