DMCA Hearings and Legislative Reform

More than 22 years have passed since Congress passed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which was intended to enable copyright owners and online service providers to collaborate to combat online infringement — but today, piracy is more rampant than ever. So where does the DMCA stand now, and what needs to happen for it to live up to the potential that Congress intended? Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC), chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s IP Subcommittee, conducted a series of hearing throughout 2020 on what’s working and not working regarding the DMCA in today’s digital age. Now that the hearings have concluded, determinations will be made on how to best proceed.

On May 21, 2020, the U.S. Copyright Office issued its long-awaited Section 512 Report as a means of assisting Congress in updating the Copyright Act for the 21^st Century. And on December 22, 2020, Chairman Tillis released a discussion draft version of the Digital Copyright Act, legislation that’s intended to provide a means for “update[ing] copyright law to address contemporary business practices and technologies and to support the growth of digital technologies without undermining incentives for creators, and for other purposes.” The Copyright Alliance and numerous organization members released a statement thanking Chairman Tillis and commending him and the subcommittee for their tremendous support in working to reform the DMCA.

For more information regarding the DMCA Hearings, including a tentative schedule, coverage and more, please see below.

Hearings, Videos and Testimonies:

• February 11, 2020 Hearing: The DMCA at 22: What is it, Why It Was Enacted, and Where Are We Now?
• March 10, 2020 Hearing: Copyright Law in Foreign Jurisdictions: How Are Other Countries Handling Digital Piracy?
• May 27, 2020 Briefing: Scope of Music Rights Within the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)
• June 2, 2020 Hearing: Is the DMCA’s Notice-and-Takedown System Working in the 21st Century
• July 28, 2020: How does the DMCA Contemplate Limitations and Exceptions Like Fair Use?
• August 26, 2020 Briefing: Section 512 Notice-Sending Requirement and Procedures
• September 16, 2020: Are Reforms to Section 1201 Needed and Warranted?
• September 30, 2020 House Judiciary Committee Hearing: Copyright and the Internet in 2020: Reactions to the Copyright Office’s Report on the Efficacy of 17 U.S.C. § 512 After Two Decades
• December 15, 2020: The Role of Private Agreements and Existing Technology in Curbing Online Piracy

Blogs, Articles and Op-Ed Coverage:

• Senator Tillis Releases Draft Bill to Modernize the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (IP Watchdog)
• Senate Hearing Explores the Role of Private Agreements and Existing Technology in Curbing Online Piracy (Copyright Alliance)
• House Judiciary Hearing Reveals Need for Copyright Law Updates (Copyright Alliance)
• Senate DMCA Hearing Explores the Current State of Section 1201 (Copyright Alliance)
• As the ‘engine of free expression,’ copyright law plays a vital role in enabling journalists to shine a light on injustice (op-Ed by Terrica Carrington, Tom Kennedy, and Akili-Casundria Ramsess in The Hill)
• DMCA Hearings III (Part 2): Independent Creators Must Remain in the Foreground (David Newhoff/Illusion of More)
• Senators and Creators Say Notice and Takedown System is Broken, While Platforms Blame the System’s Failures on Creators (Copyright Alliance)
• Senators and Creators Say Notice and Takedown System is Broken, While Platforms Blame the System’s Failures on Creators  (Copyright Alliance)
• DMCA Review – SJC Sounds Skeptical That Everything Is Fine (David Newhoff/Illusion of More)
• Breaking the rhetorical stalemate instead of the internet (Gail Mackinnon/The Hill)
• DMCA Review Begins. Watch the Red Flag. (David Newhoff/Illusion of More)
• Reviewing the DMCA at 22: A Chance to Make the Internet Live Up to Its Promise (Lamar Smith/Morning Consult)
• DMCA Reform: Without it, “there will be no economic justice for working musicians. All the rest is hype.” (Neil Turkewitz)
• Time for a DMCA Overhaul? Congressional Hearings Commence on Capitol Hill (Digital Music News)
• Getting back to basics on the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (Op-Ed by Senator Thom Tillis in The Hill)
• Senate Hearing Explores the Intersection of Fair Use and the DMCA: Part I (Copyright Alliance)
• Senate Hearing Explores the Intersection of Fair Use and the DMCA: Part II (Copyright Alliance)
• DMCA HEARING IV – Contemplating Fair Use (David Newhoff/Illusion of More)
• Senate IP Subcommittee Hearing Addresses Intersection of DMCA and Fair Use (Yumi Oda/Center for the Protection of Intellectual Property, Antonin Scalia Law School)
• Senate IP Subcommittee Hearing on DMCA Exposes Notice-and-Takedown Problems for Artists and Authors (Yumi Oda/Center for the Protection of Intellectual Property, Antonin Scalia Law School)
• The AM-FM Bill and the Status of Terrestrial Music Broadcast Performance Rights (David Ward/Center for the Protection of Intellectual Property, Antonin Scalia Law School)

Statements, Letters and Videos:

• Music Community Applauds Step Forward on DMCA Reform (RIAA, A2IM, Artists Rights Alliance, MAC, NSAI, NMPA, Recording Academy, SAG-AFTRA, SONA, MMF-US)
• Authors Guild Applauds Release of the Draft Digital Copyright Act of 2021 (Authors Guild)
• Copyright Alliance and Its Members Commend Senator Tillis on Year-Long DMCA Review and Release of Digital Copyright Act Discussion Draft (Copyright Alliance)
• AAP Comments on DMCA Reform Discussion Draft Legislation from Senator Thom Tillis (AAP)
• Motion Picture Association Statement on DMCA Review and the Digital Copyright Act of 2021 Discussion Draft (MPA)
• Senate Subcommittee Introduces Draft Bill to Reform DMCA (Recording Academy)
• Tillis Releases Landmark Discussion Draft to Reform the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (Senator Tillis’ Office)
• Letter from Senators Tillis and Leahy to Acting Register Strong Regarding Section 512 Report Questions (May 29, 2020)
• Copyright Alliance Statement on Senate IP Subcommittee DMCA Hearing on the Notice-and-Takedown System
• RIAA Chairman and CEO Mitch Glazier Shares a Video Message on Why Creators Urgently Need the DMCA to be Updated. [The] system is broken. It’s time for us to, once again, come together to fix the DMCA – Mitch Glazier