Keith Kupferschmid – Chief Executive Officer
Keith Kupferschmid is President and CEO of the Copyright Alliance, a position he has held since 2015. In this role, he is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the Copyright Alliance’s operations—including strategy, government affairs, communications, membership, and liaising with boards and committees.
Kupferschmid’s extensive work on the Hill has contributed to modernizing copyright law, culminating in the enactment of the Music Modernization Act (MMA), the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act (CASE Act), and the Protecting Lawful Streaming Act (PLSA), among others. He has also raised the profile of the Copyright Alliance within the creator community and strived to garner additional rights and protections for creators across the country through education, advocacy initiatives, and speaking opportunities. Kupferschmid has testified before Congress and various federal and state government agencies on key copyright issues, has held leadership positions in the American Bar Association (ABA) and American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), serves on the boards of Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts (WALA) and the U.S. Intellectual Property Alliance (USIPA), and was selected to be a member of the Library of Congress’ Copyright Public Modernization Committee (CPMC).
Before joining the Copyright Alliance, Kupferschmid served as the General Counsel and Senior Vice President for Intellectual Property for the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) for 16 years. Prior to that, he worked at Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner; the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office; the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; and the U.S. Copyright Office.
Blogs Authored By Keith Kupferschmid
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Political Campaigns and Copyright Make Strange Bedfellows
With November elections approaching, headlines about politicians or government officials using copyrighted works without permission are likely to resurface. Political actors have long used creative works to connect with supporters, inspire action, and reinforce campaign messages. Those uses, however, can create difficult legal and practical questions for copyright owners. The familiar example is unlicensed music…
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World Standards Day: The Importance of the Copyright System That Supports Safety Standards Innovation
Every October 14, we mark World Standards Day, though most people have never heard of it. In fact, because most people don’t know much about safety standards at all, you’d be forgiven if this day wasn’t on your radar. But it should be. From the fire codes that protect our homes to the technical standards…
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The Copyright Alliance Honors Senator Marsha Blackburn
On September 23, 2026, the Copyright Alliance presented Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) with an award to thank her for her decades of ongoing support of creators and the copyright industry. This blog includes the remarks shared by Copyright Alliance CEO Keith Kupferschmid when presenting Senator Blackburn with her award. Senator Blackburn’s Many Contributions We are…
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You Can’t Steal Your Way to Fair Use: The Unclean Hands Doctrine and AI Training
The following blog post is part four of a four-part series on the use of pirated copies of copyrighted works by AI companies and whether such use should be considered to be fair use. This is the last post in a series of blogs devoted to the use of pirated works from illicit sources by…
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Fair Use Is Not a Shield AI Companies Can Use to Shelter Their Use of Pirate Copies: Analysis of Fair Use Factors 2-4
The following blog post is part three of a four-part series on the use of pirated copies of copyrighted works by AI companies and whether such use should be considered to be fair use. Previously, we discussed the history of companies being held liable for trying to make a business from using goods acquired from…
