Aussies allowed to rip their CDs

Australia officially legalizes format shifting, thus legalizing converting your CDs into MP3s. At the same time the Aussie government will try to fight internet downloads and file-sharing:

Once the new laws are passed, “format shifting” of music, newspapers and books from personal collections onto MP3 players will become legal. The new laws will also make it legal for people to tape television and radio programs for playback later, a practice currently prohibited although millions of people regularly do it.
…But the Government is giving police greater powers to tackle internet piracy, signalling that the days of downloading music from the internet danger-free may be limited. Police will be able to issue on-the-spot fines and access and recover profits made by copyright pirates. Courts will be given powers to award larger damages payouts against internet pirates.

Although it sounds perfectly normal to most of us that you’re allowed to rip your CDs to listen to your music on your iPod as well, the RIAA recently claimed that they’d see it as a copyright infringement.

The Age > Transferring music ruled legal

Update: Here’s the big, bad other half of the reform.

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