New Requirement for Online Registration of a Designated Agent under the DMCA
New Requirement for Online Registration of a Designated Agent under the DMCA
First Step for Safe Harbor Relief Against Monetary or Injunctive Relief from Copyright Owners
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) provides safe harbors from copyright infringement liability for certain services provided by online service providers, specifically:
(1) system caching (intermediate or temporary storage of material on a system or network controlled or operated by or for the service provider);
(2) hosting (storage at the direction of the user of material that resides on a system or network controlled or operated by or for the service provider); and
(3) peer to peer linking (provider referring or linking users to an online location containing infringing material or infringing activity, by using information location tools, including a directory, index, reference, pointer, or hypertext link).
The first step in qualifying for safe harbor protection is for service providers to designate an agent to receive notifications of claimed copyright infringement. To designate an agent, a service provider must do two things: (1) make certain contact information for the agent available to the public on its website; and (2) provide the same information to the Copyright Office, which maintains a centralized online directory of designated agent contact information for public use. The service provider must also ensure that this information is up to date.
In December 2016, the Copyright Office introduced an online registration system and electronically generated directory to replace the Copyright Office’s old paper-based system and directory. To designate an agent, a service provider must register with and use the Office’s online system. The online system can be accessed by visiting https://dmca.copyright.gov/osp/login.html. There is a nominal fee of $6 per registrant for the initial registration or any renewal or amendment of a registration. Registrations must be renewed every three years.
Service providers have until December 31, 2017 to register their Designated Agents with the Copyright Office; however, if you have not previously registered a Designated Agent in the old paper-based system, then we strongly encourage you to register online as soon as possible in order to avail your company of the protections of the DMCA safe harbor provisions.
Please note the following when registering:
- While there is some uncertainty concerning which types of service providers must register, we recommend that you register a Designated Agent for each of your subsidiaries and affiliates. The Designated Agent may be the same for all of your related entities.
- A Designated Agent may be an individual, a specific position or title held by an individual, a specific department within the service provider’s organization or within a third-party entity, or a third-party entity generally.
- A service provider is required to supply its full legal name, physical street address (not a post office box), any alternate names used by the service provider, and the name, organization, physical mail address (street address or post office box), telephone number, and email address of its Designated Agent.