We promise we didn’t just spill a can of alphabet soup in the title of this post!
If your company’s website hosts user-generated content, or UGC (more acronyms!), you may be able to take advantage of a provision under US copyright law that will help minimize the impact of allegations of online infringement.
In 1998, Congress passed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) in response to concerns regarding the growth of the internet and digital piracy. One important issue that the DMCA addresses is the liability of online service providers (OSPs).
If customers, employees, or others share content directly on your website, your company could be liable if this content infringes on someone else’s copyrights – even if you didn’t know it was infringing or someone else posted the content. However, by complying with the DMCA, your company may be able to rely on a “safe harbor” to avoid certain types of liability.
Meeting the requirements of the DMCA can be easy (and only costs $6 in Copyright Office filing fees!). Depending on the type of OSP you are, you may be required to do the following:
- Make a filing with the Copyright Office to identify an agent that the public can notify about alleged online infringement. The Copyright Office will then list this information in a public online database called the “DMCA Designated Agent Directory.” You can appoint an individual, a specific title or position, a department, or a third party (for example, the member of the IT team responsible for updating the website or the legal department).
This agent designation must be renewed every three years, but the Copyright Office only charges $6 for each registration or renewal. Remember to include “alternate names” in your filing, such as brand names and trade names that the public might search for to identify someone to contact regarding potential online infringement.
- Display the agent’s name and contact information on a publicly accessible portion of your website. We suggest listing an email address for a central email box that is regularly checked by multiple people to ensure continuity if employees go on vacation or leave the company.
- Arrange takedown of allegedly infringing content as quickly as possible after receiving a complaint – ideally within 24 hours – even if the agent thinks the complaint is without merit. The agent must then notify the poster of the content and give them a chance to challenge the takedown. In addition to handling the notice and takedown process when allegations arise, it’s also important to implement a procedure for terminating repeat infringers.
Here’s hoping that these DMCA ABCs will help your company stay A-OK!
