[WEB4LIB] Digital Millenium Copyright Act implications f

[CMUNSON]

How about fighting back against this obscene assault on public domain 
works? Isn't that what we should be doing instead of being copyright cops 
for Disney?

Chuck0

Spunk Library
www.spunk.org


______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: [WEB4LIB] Digital Millenium Copyright Act implications for l
Author:  Michael Piper <mpiper at tsl.state.tx.us> at Internet
Date:    2/2/99 1:14 PM


Dear Colleagues:

We've been studying the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which 
was signed into law on October 28, 1998. 

DMCA says inadvertently helping someone violate copyright laws is 
"vicarious" or "contributory" infringement, even if the materials were 
posted illegally by someone else. DMCA also sets a limitation on the 
potential money damages online service providers can accrue when they 
allow access to copyrighted material someone else placed online. 

Have any of you taken - or do you plan to take - the steps outlined in 
DMCA to protect against copyright liability? These steps include: 

*       Appointing a designated agent to receive notices from copyright 
owners.

*       Providing users with information about copyright laws.

*       Developing and posting a policy for termination of repeat 
offenders.

*       Complying with "take down" and "put back" notice requirements. 

*       Accommodating industry-standard technical measures - "digital 
watermarks" for instance - used by owners to protect their works.

*       Paying a $20 fee to the Copyright Office.

We'd like to benefit from your expertise, so I welcome your comments on 
this issue. Thank you for your consideration.

PS For more on the DMCA, see http://www.ala.org/washoff/osp.html. 

Note: this message has been posted on multiple lists. Please excuse any 
inconvenience.

**********
**********
Michael Piper, Director
Library Resource Sharing Division
Texas State Library and Archives Commission Box 
12927
Austin TX     78711-2927
Voice: 512/463-7402     Fax: 512/936-2306 
michael.piper at tsl.state.tx.us