Although the FAIR USE Act introduced yesterday by Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA) and Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA) will have little more than a symbolic effect on the DMCA, that isn't stopping the Recording Industry Association of America from unloading on the bill with both barrels. In a statement released earlier today by the RIAA, the group said that Rep. Boucher's bill would have the effect of kneecapping the DMCA.

"The DMCA has enabled consumers to enjoy creative works through popular new technologies," the RIAA said in a statement. "The DVD, iPod and the iTunes Music Store can all be traced to the DMCA. Online games, on-demand movies, e-books, online libraries, and many other services are coming to market because of a secure environment rooted in the DMCA’s protections."

Once again, the RIAA finds itself at odds with the Consumer Electronics Association. CEA President and Gary Shapiro is welcoming the FAIR USE Act, saying that it "will reinforce the historical fair use protections of constitutionally-mandated copyright law that are reflected in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)."

Shapiro and the CEA would get a significant boost from the bill, should it pass, due to provisions that would significantly shield electronics manufacturers from liability for infringement. The Act would make it difficult for rights-holders to receive statutory damages in most cases of infringement.

That sets off alarm bells for the RIAA. The FAIR USE Act "would repeal the DMCA and legalize hacking," says the RIAA. "It would reverse the Supreme Court's decision in Grokster and allow electronics companies to induce others to break the law for their own profit."

The RIAA also takes issue with the bill's narrow exemptions to the DMCA. "Proponents of H.R. 1201 claim it legalizes hacking only for 'noninfringing' uses," reads the RIAA's statement. "But as Congress recognized when it enacted the DMCA, the difference between hacking done for noninfringing purposes and hacking done to steal is impossible to determine and enforce. That's why Congress created a review process that takes place every three years to determine whether fair uses of copyrighted works are in periland why Congress gave the power to the Librarian of Congress to take away DMCA protections in cases where fair use is in danger."

Earlier today, we wondered if the copyright industry would "decide that Boucher's legislation is a way to buy off one of their most powerful adversaries on copyright issues, helping to undermine support for broader copyright reform efforts." It looks like we have our answer. Even though the FAIR USE Act doesn't do nearly enough to fix the very real problems with the DMCA or to shore up fair use, the content creation industry looks set to fight the legislation tooth and nail.