1. The U.S. Copyright Office’s Own Report States Need For Stakeholder Discussion and Consensus In May 2020, the Copyright Office issued a report on its 5-year study of the DMCA’s Section 512. On technical measures, the Copyright Office concluded: “Regardless of any future congressional action on section 512(i), the development of STMs depends upon voluntary collaboration and consultation within and…

About S. 3880, the SMART Copyright Act Senator Thom Tillis and Senator Patrick Leahy introduced S. 3880 to impose content filters on the internet and innovation. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) was established to create a careful balance between creators, innovation, consumers and free expression. In the 20 years since passage, the legislation has powered a digital renaissance of…

Groups come out in strong opposition to S. 3880, legislation that would impose government-mandated content filters on the internet and innovation, giving government bureaucrats the power to decide how Americans’ everyday digital products and services work. This new round of opposition follows the thousands of members of the public who already told the U.S. Copyright Office they oppose technical mandates…

Creators, Consumers, Libraries and Tech Tell Copyright Office “No” On Technical Mandates & Filtering The U.S. Copyright Office’s request for input on the use of technical measures to address copyright infringement triggered a massive response in opposition. While organizations representing creators, consumers, libraries, startups and more raised the concerns of their members, thousands of comments were also filed by members…

Our latest installment features a discussion with Jessica Maddox, Assistant Professor of Digital Media Technology at the University of Alabama on pushing the boundaries of what we understand about influence, creators and tech platforms. Professor Maddox provided a preview to her upcoming book, The Internet is for Cats: Attention, Affect, and Animals in Digital Sociality, scheduled to come out this…

Our nation’s copyright laws were created to foster knowledge, creativity and innovation, but there are too many examples today of how copyright law is abused to do just the opposite. When product manufacturers use copyright law to prevent consumers from repairing products they own, they stifle innovation, competition and progress.   Software is ubiquitous today – in our cars, our phones,…