But the DMCA's 1201 provisions didn't apply to Sony v. Bleem since the DRM scheme of the PlayStation didn't attempt to stop you from copying, but instead focused on stopping a legitimate PS1 from playing copies.

I don't think SCEA started the lawsuit because they were sure they would win, I think the intent was to make Bleem run out of money.

    "Bleem!, financially unable to defend itself, was forced to go out of business."

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bleem%21

Ah, but the DMCA Section 1201 took effect in 2000-2001. Many other DMCA sections were delayed to take effect in the years following the law's passing.

Careful, §1201(a)(1) (to which the exemption rulemaking process applies) was delayed, but §1201(a)(2) and §1201(b) (which don't have the exemption rulemaking attached) were not delayed this way. (a)(1) is an "acts" provision while (a)(2) and (b) are "tools" provisions.

Thanks for the correction. See

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39599019

for a more detailed reply.