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Protecting your IP with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act

When the Digital Millennium Copyright Act was signed into law in 1998, the law regrading intellectual properties as they exist in the “virtual” marketplace was, if not secured, at least addressed for the first time in copyright legislation.  This has not, however come without controversy.  Many who specialize in copyright litigation fear the Digital Millennium Copyright Act is fatally flawed in that it gives copyright owners too much freedom to issue cease and desist letters to electronic publishers.

No matter what side you dome down on the fairness of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act legislation (or any of the exceptions that have been made since 2000, 2002 and most notably in 2006), the protections afforded in it can certainty be used to justly protect copyrighted material from being stolen and used by other “artists” that would claim it as their own.  The simple threat of copyright litigation is enough to dissuade most people from stealing your stuff.

Of course, a great deal of copyright litigation starts by discovering that your copyright are being infringed upon.  While it may haphazardly come to your attention one way or another, most often one isn't even aware unless they periodically look.  There is nothing in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that suggests its anyone's business but your own to find evidence of infringement. 

The act of enforcement is your own, and copyright litigation is your best  weapon to fight back.  Hope fully you can stay out of court, and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act provides a bit of muscle beneath any threat you might make to someone you have proof is violating your copyright protected works.

When the threat of copyright litigation is no longer enough, you will need the help of a copyright attorney to assist you in bringing a solid case to court.  You will need proof, so having a copyright laugher that understands the technical side of how to gain that proof is indispensable in pursuing a Digital Millennium Copyright Act infringement claim in a court of law.

Those who wind up pursuing copyright litigation with the help of an attorney will find that even with the increased powers to defend copyright against plunder granted by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, there are still plenty of protections for defendants in the US legal system.  Even more frustrating to some engaged in international copyright litigation, the laws of other nations, subject to treaty, are sometimes less than forthcoming, making meaningful persecution under the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act difficult if not impossible sometimes.

Protecting a copyright can be difficult with the advent of instantaneous communication transfer of information, but the Digital Millennium Copyright Act is designed to give copyright holders a framework from which they can work.