Impact Of The Digital Millennium Copyright Act On...

Impact of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act on Copyright Enforcement and Fair Use Jean-Paul Muyshondt University of North Carolina Wilmington Abstract The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 has changed the focus of copyright enforcement away from the act of copyright infringement and toward the act of circumvention of the technologies used to protect the rights of digital media owners. Additionally, the act has had adverse effects that outweigh the benefits that it provides. Key Words: copyright, DMCA, DRM, ethics, fair use, legal/societal impact. 1. Introduction Prior to the 1990s, United States copyright legislation, like the media that it protected, had remained relatively unchanged. The advancement of digital technologies, specifically the advent of the Internet and the increasing ability to easily exchange digital media, prompted a change in copyright law. This change came in the form of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). The act extends the protections given to copyright holders. In order to provide this additional protection, the DMCA also has adverse effects. This paper will explore copyright law in the United States and discuss the positive and negative effects of the DMCA, as well as some of the ethical implications associated with it. 2. Background 2.1. Copyright law prior to 1998 and the need for change Copyright laws in the United States can trace their roots to the Constitution, where Congress was granted the power â€Å"ToShow MoreRelated Copyrights: Intellectual Property and Technology Essay1535 Words   |  7 PagesCopyrights: Intellectual Property and Technology The Government and many other agencies around the world are continuously at work to improve protections for intellectual property rights and the enforcement of intellectual property laws. In today’s age of digital madness, passing legislation and actually enforcing of those laws becomes a very daunting task. 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