CNET: Judge shuts garage opener copyright suit

The overly-broad Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) has been abused by some companies to try to force competing businesses out of their market. The poorly-worded act could be interpreted as allowing any product maker to have the right to sue companies making replacement parts. Such cases arose out in the case of Lexmark, a printer maker trying to quash competing ink cartridge companies and even a garage door opener company that wanted to stop a competitor from making replacement remotes.

A judge dismissed that last case, but did not do so based on the silliness of the DMCA, but rather on a consumers' rights issue. The unintended interpretation of the act lives on.