
Internet Users of All Kinds Should Be Concerned by a New Copyright Office Report - elorant
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/06/internet-users-all-kinds-should-be-concerned-new-copyright-offices-report
======
nsajko
In December 2019, the Register of Copyrights (Karyn Temple) announced leaving
the Copyright Office to join the _Motion Picture Association_ , effective
January 3, 2020.

[https://www.copyright.gov/newsnet/2019/791.html](https://www.copyright.gov/newsnet/2019/791.html)

See
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolving_door_(politics)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolving_door_\(politics\))

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ikeboy
We need strict liability for false DMCA notices plus automatic award of
attorney fees in a successful 512(f) case. Would fix 95% of the abuse.

~~~
elliekelly
I wonder if a system like this could work to prevent abuse:

\- Alleged copyright owners pay $X to file a DMCA notice

\- Accused copyright infringers pay $Y to file a counter-notice

\- Funds are held in escrow

\- If the accused doesn't file a counter-notice within 10 days the copyright
owner gets their $X back

\- If a counter-notice _is_ filed and the alleged copyright owner doesn't file
suit within 90 days, no matter the reason, the accused infringer gets their $Y
back.

\- The pool of remaining funds is first used to offset the website's cost of
credit card transactions for collecting filing fees and then any additional
funds go to the Library of Congress.

~~~
ikeboy
In what circumstances would escrowed money be forfeited?

If the escrowed money doesn't go to the parties, then there's no incentive
from either side to consider the other side's escrow when determining their
actions. Or worse - someone could file a suit and dismiss it later just to
force escrow to be paid out. I think you need a lot more details on what
happens in each scenario here.

~~~
Buttons840
The circumstances where the escrow IS NOT returned would be the forfeitures.
You have to read between the lines since the comment only specifies when
escrow IS returned.

So, alleged copyright owner loses escrow when a counter claim is filed. The
accused loses escrow when a lawsuit is filed.

This detail isn't as important as the overall result. Those who engage in mass
DMCA abuse will directly lose money as a result.

~~~
ac29
> The accused loses escrow when a lawsuit is filed.

So all the alleged copyright owner needs to do to deprive the accused of $Y is
file a lawsuit (which could be completely lacking in merit)? That is arguably
worse than the status quo, unless $Y is trivially small, in which case it
lacks meaning to begin with.

~~~
wtallis
If the plaintiff's case lacks merit, the defendant will get $Y back when the
plaintiff loses, plus other fees, and the plaintiff who wasted everyone's time
pays all of those costs and potentially punitive damages or sanctions if it
was a really egregious abuse of the takedown process.

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bitcurious
As a forum of tech employees, the EFF is probably the closest we have to an
advocacy group. Donate money, donate time.

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ikeboy
[https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/is-the-dmcas-
notic...](https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/is-the-dmcas-notice-and-
takedown-system-working-in-the-21st-century)

There's a hearing going on in the Senate today in two hours (linked in the
article), if anyone wants to watch the livestream.

~~~
jcranmer
The hearing just started.

Tiller's opening remarks do not leave me with much hope. It's basically
"copyright owners are suffering!" and there's no reference to DMCA abuse...

~~~
Mindwipe
That's because DMCA abuse is broadly a myth.

~~~
ikeboy
Amazon testified in 2016 that over 50% of DMCA notices received for Kindle
Direct were bogus:

> So with Kindle Direct publishing, authors routinely try to climb to the top
> spot in their category or the top of their browse note, as Amazon would call
> it, by issuing bogus notices against higher ranking titles. And this for us
> actually accounts for more than half of the takedown notices that we
> receive.

[https://www.copyright.gov/policy/section512/public-
roundtabl...](https://www.copyright.gov/policy/section512/public-
roundtable/transcript_05-13-2016.pdf)

------
aspenmayer
Full report:

[https://www.copyright.gov/policy/section512/section-512-full...](https://www.copyright.gov/policy/section512/section-512-full-
report.pdf)

Related:

U.S. Copyright Office Says It's Time to Update the DMCA—Mostly in Favor of
Rightsholders

[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23278611](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23278611)

[https://gizmodo.com/u-s-copyright-office-says-its-time-to-
up...](https://gizmodo.com/u-s-copyright-office-says-its-time-to-update-the-
dmca-1843608938)

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etaioinshrdlu
Can someone post a shorter summary of what this would mean?

~~~
nsajko
The Copyright Office "forgot" about the public interest. Basically, they
represent the copyright owners. The best part is how they second guess courts.

Try at least skimming the article, though.

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LockAndLol
Would this drive more people towards censorship resistant networks like I2P
and see the rise of more piracy?

