Copying CDs And DVDs To Digital Formats Ruled Illegal In UK High Court

Music and video ripping is illegal in the United Kingdom, once again. The U.K. High Court overturned an October 2014 ruling that allowed people to make copies of CDs and DVDs for personal use, the BBC reported Friday.

Under these renewed circumstances, people in the U.K. cannot change the format of the music they purchase. That stipulation includes making additional hard copies of CDs and DVDs they purchased legally or transferring the files to digital formats. For example, if someone purchased a physical copy of Taylor Swift's "1989" album and the fan also wanted to listen to the album on their iPod, they would also have to purchase a digital version.

The previous overturning had been challenged by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors, the Musicians’ Union and lobbying group U.K. Music, which applied for judicial review in November 2014. The court held a hearing on July 3 and released the full ruling July 17.

"It is vitally important that fairness for songwriters, composers and performers is written into the law. My members’ music defines this country," UK Music CEO Jo Dipple said in a statement. "It is only right that Government gives us the standard of legislation our music deserves. We want to work with Government so this can be achieved.”

It is unclear how the law will be enforced and how extensive it will be implemented. Court action on copying music for personal use was rare, the BBC noted. But the law could be used after identifying someone for distributing and selling music illegally.

U.K. Music estimated that making copies for personal use results in a potential loss of approximately £58 million ($90.5 million) each year, the lobbying group reported in April 2014.

Unfair compensation to artists has received attention from high-profile artists in the last year. Rapper Jay-Z launched his own streaming music service in an effort to give artists a larger share of money. Singer Taylor Swift does not allow her music on streaming services Spotify and Tidal but has granted permission to Apple Music.