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Senator Martinez writes back in regards to ORPHAN
ACT..... Thought I would share this with everyone. I encourage you to write to your Senators both Mel Martinez and in your respected states. Especially since it looks like it may gain a bit more momentum with people who have no idea what the Orphan act is. If you dont mind people stealing your photos and utilizing your work - then ignore this message completely! Below is a response to the recent comments I received from you: Dear Mr. Herota: Thank you for contacting me regarding the Orphan Works Act. I appreciate hearing from you and would like to respond to your concerns. Patent rights and the protection of intellectual property are the fundamental building blocks of commerce and innovation in our country. I believe that artists and innovators should be fairly compensated for their work, and that reasonable efforts to find and reward these individuals should be made before allowing works to be used or copied by others. On April 24, 2008, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced the Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008 (S.2913). An orphan work is a copyrighted work where it is difficult or impossible to contact the copyright holder. The establishment of the Orphan Works Act would provide restrictions and limitations to the remedies that could be awarded to those involved in copyright infringement that entail orphan works. This bill would require that the infringer takes diligent effort to locate the author of the infringed copy before using the work and require a Notice of Use to be filed with the Register of Copyrights before the work was used. The bill specifies that monetary relief may not be made for damages, costs and attorney's fees, however reasonable monetary compensation can be made to the owner of the patent or copyright. Other limitations include that compensation may not be collected if the infringer is a non-profit educational institution, museum, library, archives, or public broadcasting entity. On May 15, 2008, S.2913 was approved by the Committee on the Judiciary, and now awaits consideration by the full Senate. I can assure you I will keep your comments in mind as we proceed with this legislation in the 110th Congress. Representative Howard Berman (D-CA) introduced similar legislation (H.R. 5889) in the U.S. House of Representatives. H.R.5889 was referred to the House Committee on Judiciary, where it awaits further approval. Again, thank you for sharing your views with me. If you have any additional questions or comments, please do not hesitate to let me know. In addition, for more information about issues and activities important to Florida, please sign up for my weekly newsletter at http://martinez.senate.gov. Sincerely, Mel Martinez United States Senator Jul 23 08 11:26 am Link Photographer407_IT-GFP wrote: This is the part that I find the most disturbing. If I read this correctly: An infringer will know that the worst case scenario is compensetory damages. They know they will never face punitive damages and know the copyright holder can not hold them liable for the court costs involved with enforcing their copyright. There's also a good chance they will never be caught. Under these circumstances, I would expect copyright infractions to drastically increase and see only see photographers take infringers to court in extremely high cost situations. Jul 23 08 01:54 pm Link See Also Orphan Works Bill 2008-HR5889 - Discussion thread Orphan Works Bill 2008 - HR5889 - text of bill (locked) New Info on Orphan Works as of July 20 Orphan Works Petition (Sign up!) Senators or Congressmen Respond Orphaned Works S.2913, a letter from Sen. Graham (and others) Photo Organization Stances/Articles Extremely Urgent - message from APA to photogs Another pro photog assn speaks on Orphan Works (NANPA) Urgent: APA Position on Orphan Works 2008 Letter to you from Michael Grecco, URGENT (locked) Fwd: ASMP Urgent: contact your Congressperson (locked: has contact info for members of the committee) Orphan Works Act from an Artists Point of View (locked) urgent!!!! this impacts photographers!! (APA stance, locked) urgent industry news! (APA stanceâdupe of previous--locked) Photo Advocates Divided Over Orphan Works (locked) Orphan Works Act : Write your senators! (Links to APA, ASMP, SAA, NPPA, and PPA articles.) General Listen up Mayhem! Copyright Emergency "Orphan Works Legislation, photo theft on time warner is trying to steal your stuff (locked) stolen work (âTime Warner passing a billâ, locked) Write you orphan rights protest letter now!!!!!! (locked) Orphan Works Act 2008-Horrid potential new law (locked) Senate Bill: Say goodbye to your copyrights (locked) Orphaned Works law and what it means to you. (locked) orphan works update (locked) I'm not too fond of congress right now... (locked) Ripoff of Photographers, Models...clear explanatio (locked) govenment wants to rob artist of their copyrights! (locked) Exception to not posting - for those who care Related Topic Orphan artworks compromise proposed (Larry Lessigâs proposal) Jul 23 08 04:03 pm Link |
