Emerging Technology Companies Defend Economic and
Cultural Importance of Innovation
WASHINGTON, March 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Time Trax Technologies announced
today it has submitted an Amicus brief to the United States Supreme Court
along with several emerging technology companies and the Electronic Frontier
Foundation (EFF) in support of Grokster. The brief argues that tightening
copyright infringement requirements on emerging technology will greatly deter
growth and competition in the United States. The Supreme Court is hearing the
case, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer v. Grokster, on Tuesday, March 29, 2005.
Time Trax develops and sells innovative digital recording technology that
records broadcasts from Sirius and XM satellite radio to capture broadcasts as
individual labeled files for later personal use. The Amicus brief submitted
to the court was signed by ten companies potentially affected by the ruling
and asks the Court to refrain from assigning liability for product use to its
manufacturer based on an immeasurable definition of "primary use." A victory
for Grokster would largely open the gates for continued innovation in this
field.
"Time Trax is rooted in the controversial innovation of technology. We've
joined this group of technology innovators and the Electronic Frontier
Foundation in submitting this brief because we could be affected dramatically
by the outcome of this case," said Elliott D. Frutkin, CEO of Time Trax.
"Innovation is the cornerstone of the American economy, and innovators should
not be held responsible for illegal use of technology they develop that is
intended for legal purposes. TimeTrax and Grokster don't steal music --
people steal music."
"Time Trax provides a valuable consumer product that allows individuals to
enhance the usability and enjoyment of entertainment and news broadcasts for
their own personal use," said Frutkin. "While a loss in this case wouldn't
shut us down, a win for Grokster would be tremendously beneficial to the
future of our company, and to the development of our product line. The
intended use of Time Trax technology is fully within copyright regulations,
and we trust our customers to support artists and entertainers by respecting
copyright laws."
"The EFF is honored to join an innovator like Time Trax in support of
Grokster," said EFF policy analyst Annalee Newitz. "Technological innovation
is crucial to the U.S. economy, and holding companies responsible for the
actions of their users starts us down a dangerous path. We're looking forward
to Grokster's day in court."
Time Trax and the other participating companies argue in the brief that
technology innovation is important to economic growth and that the legal
uncertainty of MGM's petition would stifle that innovation as companies may
move slowly due to litigation fears. It also proposes that the foundation of
MGM's claims regarding potential copyright infringement by users of these
technologies is extremely difficult to assess.
Time Trax CEO Elliott Frutkin will be in attendance at the arguments on
Tuesday, March 29th and will be available to the media after the arguments for
further comments.
About Time Trax Technologies Corp.
Time Trax Technologies develops and markets plug'n'play products that
allow people to easily record satellite radio broadcasts onto personal
computers. With TimeTrax, users can capture broadcasts from hundreds of
satellite radio stations from XM and Sirius. TimeTrax saves captured
broadcasts as MP3 or other audio type files, which can be accessed by PC,
saved to a CD, or automatically transferred onto an MP3 player, for use at the
listener's convenience. TimeTrax was conceived in 2004 by Toronto, Canada
software developer G. Scott MacLean. The TimeTrax recording software has been
downloaded more than 400,000 times in the company's first six months of
operation. TimeTrax software, USB adapters and satellite radios are all for
sale at http://www.timetraxtech.com. Time Trax products will be available in
retail stores in Q3 2005.
Copies of the Amicus brief are available at the EFF website:
http://www.eff.org/IP/P2P/MGM_v_Grokster/
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