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However, did you know that there is usually a very easy solution to give such online infringers a rap on their knuck-
les? Some days back, while I was reading a blog post by one of my favourite bloggers, Gene Quinn, I got to know
about utility of DMCA takedown notice. Gene is a US patent attorney and the owner of an IP blog, IPWatchdog. He
recently blogged about how he used DMCA takedown notices to bring down a blog (ironically, belonging to an In-
dian IP service company) having posts completely ripped off from IPWatchdog.
So what exactly is a DMCA takedown notice? To understand DMCA takedown notice, we will have to understand
the Digital Millennium Copyright Act(DMCA), passed by US senate in late 1990’s. The DMCA is a special enactment
that criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or services intended to circumvent copyright
measures, and heightens the penalties for copyright infringement on the Internet. Now, the DMCA provides provi-
sions of limiting liability of the “service provider” (hosting companies, such as Rackspace, Godaddy etc) for copyright
infringement by a mechanism known as DMCA takedown notice. More specifically, the DMCA takedown notice
mechanism allows copyright owners to send notices to the service providers informing about websites and blogs,
allegedly having infringing material, hosted or cached on their servers. On notification, if the service providers act
swiftly and remove the alleged infringing content, then they become immune from any copyright infringement suit
later brought by the copyright owner.
Now, it should be understood that most of the blogs and websites, are hosted on servers of US based service pro-
viders, which are bound by the DMCA to act against such notices, even if the copyright owner is based outside US.
In other words, an Indian complainant, like you and me, can very well send notices to US based service providers to
act against a copyright infringement, irrespective of the fact that the blog/website owner is based in US or not. The
only thing that matters is that the hosting company is of US origin. All we
have to do is find the name of the service provider from a database, such
as Whois.net, and send a standard notice (see Template below sourced
from www.google.com) to the service provider by fax or by mail. Sending
via email is not usually permitted.
1. Identify in sufficient detail the copyrighted work that you believe has
been infringed upon (for example, “The copyrighted work at issue is the
text that appears on http://www.abcd.com/1234_page.html”) or other in-
formation sufficient to specify the copyrighted work being infringed (for
example, “The copyrighted work at issue is the “Touch Not This Cat” by
Dudley Smith, published by Smith Publishing, ISBN #0123456789″).
2. Identify the material that you claim is infringing the copyrighted work
listed in item #1 above.
3. Provide information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact you (email address is preferred).
4. Provide information, if possible, sufficient to permit the service provider to notify the owner/administrator of the al-
legedly infringing webpage or other content (email address is preferred).
5. Include the following statement: “I have a good faith belief that use of the copyrighted materials described above as
allegedly infringing is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.”
6. Include the following statement: “I swear, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notification is accu-
rate and that I am the copyright owner or am authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is alleg-
edly infringed.”
7. Sign the paper.
8. Send the written communication or fax it to the address of the service provider.
So next time you see violation of your copyright, please step up and send the DMCA notice, and rap their knuckles and
rap em’ hard!
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