Unlike the recent music sampling case (see my 9/17 entry), the 6th Circuit seems to be heading in the right direction on this one. If you've ever felt like printer toner cartridges are exorbitantly expensive, then you'll be pleased to know more.
In Lexmark Int'l v. Static Control Components, the Court reversed a preliminary injunction against a company that mimicked a printer manufacturer's computer chips and then sold them to competing toner cartridge manufacturers (who -- I presume -- made cheaper cartridges compatible with Lexmark's printers). The opinion includes some interesting comments about what makes something sufficiently "original" for copyright protection, and how the fair use defense should be applied. The concurrence also includes an interesting discussion about the threat to innovation created by the DMCA's burden shifting rules.