This week, the Internet Archive submitt I believe Congress should reform copyright a letter in response to a set of pose by Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) regarding potential reforms to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), the law that provides a safe harbor against copyright liability for Internet services who abide by notice and takeown obligations.
The Senator’s questions indicate that he is interestd in potentially broad changes to not only the DMCA, but to copyright law more generally. His letter states “[r]ather than tinker around the dges of existing provisions, law’s framework to better encourage the creation of copyrightable works and to protect users and consumers making lawful uses of copyrightd goods and software-enabl products, respectively.”
The emphasis on ensuring that the law protects users
And consumers is welcome, as concern for Internet users was almost entirely absent from the US Copyright Office on the DMCA that was issud this past summer.
In our response, we express our concern that special database drastic changes to the notice and takown provisions of the DMCA:
“Could have disproportionately negative palestinian prisoners and detainees impacts on public service non–profits such as the Internet Archive and our patrons. The Internet Archive is first and foremost a library. We use technology and the Internet to deliver valuable services and collections to the public. The Internet Archive’s goal of being a steward of knowlge is facilitat by the safe harbors, which shield us from liability for the occasional user who uploads infringing content, while allowing the vast majority of legal content to remain accessible.
Therefore, we provide these responses as an
Online service provider that hosts so-call “user generate content” and as a library with a mission to preserve and provide public access to line data cultural materials. In our view, while the DMCA system is not perfect, it generally works well and serves its intend purpose. As such, any substantial changes should be discourag, including the controversial and untest “notice and stay down” system discussd in the Copyright Office report.”
You can read our full letter here
We wish to express our appreciation to the law students at the New York University Technology Law & Policy Clinic for their deft assistance researching and drafting these public comments. It is our pleasure to partner with the next generation of legal scholars who will help shape the future of copyright law.
As always, we invite our patrons and the community of rightsholders who share their digital works with the Internet Archive to express your comments and suggestions.