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The DMCA Violation Form May Have A Just Use, After All

The MPAA / RIAA stranglehold, in the USA, on the electronic consumer, may have reached a peak with their ability to coerce the US Congress to pass the DMCA. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, thought by some to be the most noxious bit of legislation since the British Tea Act of 1773, may have a valid use, though.

It's possible that the DMCA Violation Form, which Blogger / Google provides, may be useful in reporting content that's been pirated, personally, from you. If you believe that your pictures, and / or articles, are being unjustly copied within Blogger / Google hosting space, you may get some relief from reporting this as a DMCA Violation.

Note, however, that a DMCA Violation report is a serious complaint, and can have repercussions both upon the source and target of the complaint.
Please note that you will be liable for damages (including costs and attorneys' fees) if you materially misrepresent that a product or activity is infringing your copyrights. Indeed, in a recent case (please see http://www.onlinepolicy.org/action/legpolicy/opg_v_diebold/ for more information), a company that sent an infringement notification seeking removal of online materials that were protected by the fair use doctrine was ordered to pay such costs and attorneys fees. The company agreed to pay over $100,000. Accordingly, if you are not sure whether material available online infringes your copyright, we suggest that you first contact an attorney.


Don't use the DMCA Violation Complaint as a casual harassment technique - only use it where you are extremely certain that your legal rights are being violated. If the Fair Use Doctrine might transcend your personal rights, or if you are unsure here what your rights provide to you, protect yourself and contact a lawyer.

If you receive a DMCA Notice, and you believe yourself to be innocent of any wrongdoing, file a Counter Claim.
The administrator of an affected site or the provider of affected content may make a counter notification pursuant to sections 512(g)(2) and (3) of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. When we receive a counter notification, we may reinstate the material in question.


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Comments

B said…
I think it's fairly irresponsible not to say that the first action should be to contact the person you feel is violating your copyright.
Dudel said…
I think this would work best for those "story-blog" or "poem-blog" writers. The ones who post up 100% original content. People with "normal articles" (like the above), I think, would have a harder time.
Nitecruzr said…
B,

The questions that I've read, which prompted this article and others about content piracy, were from people who had made good faith attempt the communicate directly with the pirates. That said, I'll take your suggestion under advisement.
Nitecruzr said…
Dudel,

People who write content based upon information which is most likely "common knowledge" will always be at a disadvantage. The best that I can hope is that the pirates who blatantly copy The Real Blogger Status will have to spend lots of time removing the hyperlinks from the content. If they don't, their websites become gateway pages for this blog.
Michael Joshua said…
I just found two of my flash fiction pieces on another blogger blog - but there is no contact information on the blog. I would love to contact them directly as "B" suggested, but don't have the ability to do so. I filed the DMCA violation online form. Do you know how long it takes to get a response?
Nitecruzr said…
I filed the DMCA violation online form. Do you know how long it takes to get a response?

Unfortunately, the form is relatively new - and knowing that lawyers will be involved, I would bet that the response time will be unpredictable. Sorry, on this I suspect you're in learning mode.
Bo Spears said…
I post remixes on my blog and have been given permission from the owners of the remix to share and promote their work on my blog. How come I get several DMCA violations which has caused my first blog to get deleted after 3 years if the DJs have given me permission?
Nitecruzr said…
How come I get several DMCA violations which has caused my first blog to get deleted after 3 years if the DJs have given me permission?

If you challenged the DMCA violations, and if the violations were dismissed, then you have to get the blog reviewed. It's also possible that your blog was deleted for other reasons, so the review is essential.

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