On October 20, Twitch streamers woke up to find that thousands of their videos had been permanently, and without advance notice, wiped from the platform. Not only did Twitch blatantly violate the law (leaving it vulnerable to user lawsuits), the incident also shows how the Digital Millennium Copyright Act fails utterly at protecting individual speech […]

After the world went into lockdown for COVID-19, Makers were suddenly confined to their workshops. Rather than idly wait it out, many of them decided to put their tools and skills to use, developing low-cost, rapid production methods for much-needed PPE and DIY ventilators in an effort to address the worldwide shortage. It might sound outlandish to think that hobbyists and…

Get To Know Our Members: American Library Association. This week, Re:Create featured a Q&A with Carrie Russell, director of public policy and advocacy at the American Library Association (ALA). Read here to learn why balanced copyright policies are so important to the libraries, librarians and the people who use them. Online Dance Group Keeps Seniors Connected During COVID. While COVID-19 precautions…

ALA Blog Re:Create has launched a blog series, Get to Know Our Members, to help others better understand the type of work Re:Create members do and why they are so motivated by copyright issues. For this post, we heard from Carrie Russell, director of public policy and advocacy at the American Library Association. 1: What is your organization’s mission? Our…

Two Million Creators Making Six-Figures. Forbes covered a new report by investment firm SignalFire that found globally, there are over 50 million people who consider themselves online creators, with two million of them earning six-figure salaries on YouTube, Instagram, Twitch and other platforms. These numbers are significant considering the majority of content on these platforms is created by individuals and…

Copyright Law Should Not Be Used As A Weapon To Limit Interoperability. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed in advance of the Google v. Oracle Supreme Court oral arguments, Google’s Kent Walker and Microsoft’s Brad Smith made a strong case in support of software interoperability and argued why companies should not be able to use copyright law as a weapon…

The Big Story: Congress must keep startups in mind while reviewing the DMCA. The House Judiciary Committee held a hearing this week about § 512 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”)—a critical area of the law for startups which provides a balanced and certain framework for addressing allegations of online copyright infringement. As we have explained, if Congress were to consider any revisions, it is…

Oracle v. Google SCOTUS Oral Arguments Next Week. Ahead of the October 7 Supreme Court oral arguments in Google v. Oracle, Jonathan Band explained ”potentially one of the most consequential copyright cases in decades.” The Supreme Court’s decision will have lasting implications on software development, innovation and competition. Amidst concerns around the Justice Department’s politicization, Band also raised questions on…

EFF is standing with a huge coalition of organizations to urge Congress to oppose the Online Content Policy Modernization Act (OCPMA, S. 4632). Introduced by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), the OCPMA is yet another of this year’s flood of misguided attacks on Internet speech (read bill [pdf]). The bill would make it harder for online platforms to take common-sense moderation measures…