A judge has ordered in the Lenz v. Universal Music case that copyright owners must consider whether an unauthorized use of a copyrighted work qualifies as fair use before sending a “DMCA takedown notice.”  A takedown notice is used by copyright owners to ask Internet Service Providers (ISP) to remove their materials that have been posted without permission.  Get instructions on how to send a DMCA takedown notice in my article. 

Enacted in 1998, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) implemented treaties signed at the 1996 World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Geneva conference.  It addresses many issues, one of which affects copyright owners directly. The DMCA states that while an ISP is not liable for transmitting information that may infringe a copyright, the ISP must remove materials from users’ websites that appear to constitute copyright in-fringement after it receives proper notice. The letter you send is called a “DMCA takedown notice.”  The ISP is required to make its agent’s name and address available so that you can send them notification.  Your copyright does not have to be registered with the U.S. Copyright Office for you to take advantage of this DMCA provision.

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