Commerce officials are considering granting exemptions to the common yet unlawful practice of copying songs from CD into MP3 files for private use after Australia legalised the move last year.
The new law passed in Australia allows music fans to make song copies regardless of the format, provided they are solely made for private and domestic use. It also restricts people uploading the copied files onto the internet, but they are allowed to be played on devices such as car sound systems or personal computers.
Under the Copyright Ordinance in Hong Kong, unauthorised copying of a work in any material forms or stored in any medium by electronic means would constitute an infringement of copyright.
'Format-shifting appears on its face to be civilly actionable in Hong Kong,' said Michael Pendleton, an intellectual property law expert at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He said the situation would be clearer if the government followed Australia's example and amended the ordinance.
A spokesman for the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau said they had been closely monitoring recent developments in intellectual property policy overseas.
'For the new time and format shifting exceptions introduced by the Australian government, we will consider including this subject for public consultation in our next round of review,' the spokesman said.
