What's up with this DVD sales site?

[Devils'Advocate]

There are a number of old TV shows that I'd love to watch...

I'm a big David E. Kelly fan, so I'd like to re-watch:
- L.A. Law
- Chicago Hope
- Picket Fences
- The Practice
- Boston Public

Others I would like to see again are:
- Life Goes On
- Daria
- St. Elsewhere

Now most of these are not available at all on DVD. Some have season 1 available only (St. Elsewhere, Life Goes On, Picket Fences).

However, you can buy the whole series of most of these shows here:
http://www.tvdvdstore.net/

Their FAQ states:

Some of these DVD's haven't even been released yet. How is it possible that you sell them?
There is a section of the American copyright law known as "The Berne Act" that Clearly states: films unreleased in the United States, including original versions of films altered and/or edited for release in the United States, are NOT protected by American copyright; thus, they are considered public domain. The entire purpose of our website is to provide otherwise unavailable films or television shows to the serious collector.

Really... this can't be legal. So why is the site still up? Is it a scam?

[ken0042]

Yes, sounds like a scam.

The fact is those shows you mentioned have been "released." I know for a fact that "The Practice" was released on television earlier this decade. The law he is quoting refers to say a Bollywood movie- if it hasn't been released in some form in the US then the rights holder cannot issue a copyright on it.

[PyramidsofMars]

I don't know if it is a scam or not. However, on a site called iOffer, I bought the full series set of Are You Afraid of the Dark. It was the first purchase I made there, and since the show is on DVD I thought I was just getting a silly deal or that the discs were badly scratched or something. I received burned discs. So, not a scam, but certainly not legal material.

Upon looking at the site again, there is clearly a lot of legal, actual stuff being sold, as well as a lot of things where it's just a guy burning stuff to discs. Sort of like torrents or illegal downloading except you pay a small fee and shipping.

[Russic]

Lol oh ioffer ... I've bought some sketchy sketchy stuff from there.