Do You Really Own Your Smartphone?

In July, the US Copyright Office will decide whether tractor-maker John Deere’s claim that its customers don’t really own the tractors they’ve paid for is a valid one. Consumers don’t hold the copyright on the software that runs on John Deere tractors, therefore the company claims that its customers aren’t allowed to modify or repair their equipment in some cases. This conflict of ownership and copyright has been around as long as digital technology, and as software becomes woven into more and more products, the issue will only create more conflicts. That’s why Rep Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) has been struggling to change that law for the past 17 years.

Rep Lofgren submitted the Unlocking Technology Act of 2015 to committee in March -- the newest iteration of her ownership crusade. And if it’s made into law, tractor owners would be allowed to modify the equipment they’ve paid for and otherwise treat their software-enabled property as they would any other object they own. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA) was originally instated to protect copyright holders from having their intellectual property illegally distributed, but Rep Lofgren said the law hasn’t kept up with the times. Software will eventually infiltrate everything; even today, software is finding its way into everything from mopeds to toasters. But the DMCA doesn’t just make it illegal to distribute copyrighted works, it also makes it illegal to bypass the copy protection. Rep Lofgren’s bill would change that. The US Copyright Office’s decision in July will provide at least a single precedent for future decisions at the intersection of copyright and ownership. But until then, farmers -- and everyone else -- must wait.