Orphan Works Act

[Ramaniscence]

If this belongs in the PPR forum then, by all means, move it, however I'm posting this HERE because, essentially this effects a lot of the people who post here.

(I searched and I didn't find anything about this here yet, either).

ESSENTIALLY, and I know it DOES apply to traditional and digital artwork posted on the internet, whether it also applies to music, I'm not sure as I haven't read the entire act, however either way it's a really important issue.

Essentially the act would change the way the orphan works laws work to where every art piece you make would HAVE to be registered with at least 3 companies as copywritten and on record, otherwise anyone else can come along and use your work for profit. Here's the large posted from CGTalk:

UPDATE! (thanks Tatiana):

The short version: If you oppose Orphan Works legislation, you need to email the House Judiciary Committee now.

>>>Click here to be taken to the page which will allow you to email the House Judiciary Committee<<<

The longer version:

From the Illustrators Partnership:

"H.R. 5889 (the Orphan Works bill in the House) unanimously sailed through the House IP Subcommittee yesterday"

/UPDATED MESSAGE

________________________________________

The information below is from 5/7/08:

I don't know where this image came from; therefore, it's mine.

IF YOU WANT TO OPPOSE ORPHAN WORKS, CLICK HERE:

>>>http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/home/<<<

The Illustrators Partnership, the Artists' Rights group which has been working to oppose the Orphan Works 2008 legislation, has made it easy for people to email Congress voicing opposition to the bills that are currently before the U.S. Congress.

It can't be easier to voice opposition to Orphan Works 2008 legislation. You can voice opposition even if you do not live in the U.S. (see below). If you oppose this legislation, then express it by selecting a sample letter and sending it to Congress - it's exceedingly easy.

From the site set up by the Illustrators Partnership:

The Illustrators Partnership sent out this latest email to its subscribers:

Related Links:

Orphan Works - Wikipedia Article (thanks Segvoia):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orphan_works

The Berne Convention (thanks Segvoia):http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berne_..._Artistic_Works

To read more about how Orphan Works legislation affects artists, read these pages provided by the Illustrators Partnership:

The Orphan Works Act of 2008 - Bill # H.R.5889

The Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008 - Bill # S.2913

You can keep track of the bills progress via these links: (thanks Howitzer)

S. 2913

H.R. 5889

Discussion threads (the most recent is first):

2008 Orphan Works Bill Introduced to US House & Senate (Artist Copyrights)

Artist's Rights in Jeopardy MOD EDIT: (Orphan Works Bill)

Mind Your Business: You Will Lose All The Rights to Your Own Art

Article and Video by Lawrence Lessig (this video was created before the Orphan Works 2008 legislation was released):

Copyright Policy: Orphan Works Reform

Illustrators Partnership ORPHAN WORKS RESOURCE PAGE FOR ARTISTS

Stay abreast of developments in Orphan Works legislation by subscribing to the Illustrators Partnership email list:

illustratorspartnership@cnymail.com

Facebook Group (spread the word):

Oppose Orphan Works 2008 Legislation - Protect Your Rights as an Artist!

Contact Traditional Media and News Outlets:

http://forums.cgsociety.org/showpost.php?p=5140614&postcount=125

______________________________________________

The long and short of it:

IF YOU WANT TO OPPOSE ORPHAN WORKS, CLICK HERE:

>>>http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/home/<<< IF YOU ARE AN ARTIST OUTSIDE THE U.S. YOU ARE ENCOURAGED TO OPPOSE ORPHAN WORKS:

>>>http://www.illustratorspartnership....earchterm=00267<<<

*Please note that simply clicking on these links does not automatically voice support. These links will take you to form letters which you can select and fill out with your information, then send via email, fax, or snail mail. (Fax is preferred as snail mail may be delayed).

Reading these form letters is a way to understand some of the concerns that we as U.S. and International artists may have regarding Orphan Works legislation.

______________________________________________

Incidentally, it should be noted that you don't have to send Congress a form email or fax. You can of course write your own email or fax and send that as well. The Illustrators Partnership has provided the link to find your local representative in Congress here:

http://www.sellyourtvconceptnow.com/orphan.html

___

This message reflects my individual views and are not representative of the CGSociety.

[Moseph]

Essentially the act would change the way the orphan works laws work to where every art piece you make would HAVE to be registered with at least 3 companies as copywritten and on record, otherwise anyone else can come along and use your work for profit.

I haven't read anything yet except for the Wikipedia entry on orphaned works and the full texts of bills S.2913 and H.R.5889, but I haven't seen anything that indicates this statement is accurate. Am I misunderstanding the purpose of the pictorial/graphical/sculptural works database?

EDIT: What I understand the bills to do is (1) limit the damages that can be awarded when someone infringes a copyrighted work for which the copyright holder cannot be found and (2) establish a database to make it easier to find copyright holders -- and this database is NOT the only thing that the bill requires to be consulted when looking for a copyright holder. From what I can tell, it doesn't change any other aspect of copyright law.

[zircon]

Yeah, looking over the info, I don't see how that conclusion is accurate.

[Vivi22]

I first saw this pop up on another forum a few weeks ago and a lot of people freaked out about it, but everything I've read about it and seen people more familiar with it and American copyright law than I say about it says that it will not result in you having to register to hold a copyright. Such a practice would not only make it difficult for someone to exercise their rights as the legitimate creator of a work, but wouldn't fit with the copyright laws of many other countries.

Anyone who thinks this will allow someone to just snatch up an unregistered work would seem to be reacting to false information/misunderstand what the bill proposes.

[Ramaniscence]

I haven't read anything yet except for the Wikipedia entry on orphaned works and the full texts of bills S.2913 and H.R.5889, but I haven't seen anything that indicates this statement is accurate. Am I misunderstanding the purpose of the pictorial/graphical/sculptural works database?

EDIT: What I understand the bills to do is (1) limit the damages that can be awarded when someone infringes a copyrighted work for which the copyright holder cannot be found and (2) establish a database to make it easier to find copyright holders -- and this database is NOT the only thing that the bill requires to be consulted when looking for a copyright holder. From what I can tell, it doesn't change any other aspect of copyright law.

Generally from what I understand of the situation from what I read is as follows:

Orphaned works are works that are copyrighted but to which the copyright owner can not be found. The databases create would be used to register artwork so it can be searched and found and the owner can be contacted so that it could be used commercially or otherwise. The CONCERN is that most artists won't have the time to register every work they've ever done, or even the one's they deem most important. With that, what protects a company from claiming they've searched the database, and used "sufficient ammounts of research" to locate the copyright owner, decide they couldn't find them, and use it commercially with "limited remedies" to the infringement. Which, even then, would likely create a costly legal battle for the artist to maybe get some compensation IF the court decides that the offender DIDN'T conduct a sufficient search, and the work in question wasn't registered in the database.

[Poke'G]

I honestly feel the inability to truly define what makes "sufficient amounts of research" for a creator will be the bill's downfall. If Congress doesn't realize that this cannot be defined, the courts will. The bill went before Congress before, two years ago and died, or at least that's what I've read from those telling artists to stop freaking out. This time around, some popular blogger found it and cried Armageddon.

And this most certainly is a political issue; it belongs in PPR.

[Arrow]

http://maradydd.livejournal.com/374886.html?format=light - Good explanation as to why this isn't as threatening as it sounds.

There's also http://orphanworks.blogspot.com/ and http://www.fanhistory.com/index.php/The_Orphan_Works_Problem_and_Proposed_Legislation for more reading material.

[KyleJCrb]

This bill was introduced back in 2006, but wasn't voted on before Congress' session ended. As far as I know, it's dead in the water and is nothing to be alarmed about currently.

[Ninja-san]

I heard this was passed with all the other acts they tacked onto the Bailout plan and I'm furious. Sure there be a register for you name and work some day but its gonna cost a lot of money.

This just isn't right ):

*edit* Nevermind. Checked the link and saw that it wasn't passed.... Still it's BS

[Moguta]

I heard this was passed with all the other acts they tacked onto the Bailout plan and I'm furious. Sure there be a register for you name and work some day but its gonna cost a lot of money.

This just isn't right ):

*edit* Nevermind. Checked the link and saw that it wasn't passed.... Still it's BS

For the actual story, and a more balanced perspective on what the Orphan Works Act really does:

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081001-orphan-works-copyright-reform-fails-in-wake-of-bailout-bid.html

It's actually pretty sensible legislation, now that the requirements of a "diligent search" are more strictly defined.

[Ninja-san]

For the actual story, and a more balanced perspective on what the Orphan Works Act really does:

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081001-orphan-works-copyright-reform-fails-in-wake-of-bailout-bid.html

It's actually pretty sensible legislation, now that the requirements of a "diligent search" are more strictly defined.

But the problem with "diligent search" is that its referring to a database with a very high fee to have your information/art registered in. Most artist starting out cannot afford that fee whenever that database is created.

[Vivi22]

But the problem with "diligent search" is that its referring to a database with a very high fee to have your information/art registered in. Most artist starting out cannot afford that fee whenever that database is created.

If you read the article Moguta linked, you'd know it's not just talking about searching one database.

The final version of the bill included an expanded definition of "diligent search" that instructs users to seek expert assistance and look in Internet databases and Copyright Office records to try to ascertain the rights-holder before using a work without permission. Specifically, users must first search the relevant Copyright Office records, search for the owner in "reasonably available" sources of information, use technology and printed publications, and search various databases, including those available online.

I would think searching using reasonably available sources can include things like at least typing the thing into Google. Odds are, anyone who put their work out there enough that some company could be thinking about using it, is probably somewhere to be found on the internet. Could some people still get the shaft? Probably. People get the shaft all the time without this, but at least this makes people try to look with at least some diligence.