Safe harbor
A statutory limitation on specified forms of copyright liability for providers that satisfy the applicable conditions.
About The Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Legislative history, scope, definitions, and the relationship between this measure and existing federal law.
Purpose and legal framework
The DMCA is broader than takedowns. Its five titles implemented international copyright treaties, created online liability limitations, added a computer-maintenance exemption, made miscellaneous copyright changes, and protected certain vessel-hull designs.
The notice-and-takedown system is found in 17 U.S.C. § 512. Anti-circumvention rules are found in § 1201, and copyright-management information protections in § 1202.
Current status
StatusFederal law
Signed into law October 28, 1998 · Public Law 105-304
Key definitions
Takedown notice
A signed communication containing the elements required by section 512(c)(3), including identification of the work, material, location, contact information, and required good-faith statements.
Counter-notice
A signed response containing the elements required by section 512(g)(3), including a statement under penalty of perjury that removal resulted from mistake or misidentification.
Legislative history
- July 29, 1997H.R.2281 is introduced in the House.
- October 8, 1998House and Senate agree to the conference report.
- October 28, 1998The DMCA is signed into law as Public Law 105-304.
- Every three yearsThe Copyright Office conducts the section 1201 exemption rulemaking.