New Antipiracy Laws Proposed

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Proposed laws to fight piracy have commendable goals but unnecessarily harsh or unworkable tactics, say policy analysts and Congressional representatives.

The two new proposals would bolster law enforcement resources to find and prosecute copyright infringement. One broadens the definition of what's covered by copyright law. The other suggests that a single upload to a file-sharing site could qualify as felony copyright infringement, with full penalties.

Deterring Pirates

The Piracy Deterrence and Education Act of 2003 (HR 2517) would create aggressive warning, education, and enforcement programs within the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Associate Attorney General's office targeting copyright infringement. Also, the owner of a pirated work could claim criminal copyright infringement even if the work isn't registered with the U.S. Copyright Office.

The bill would help small-scale copyright holders without strong financial backing retain control of their works by eliminating bureaucratic obstacles, representatives of the photography and needlework industries told a House Judiciary subcommittee at a hearing on Thursday.

Although the debate on intellectual piracy has largely revolved around the downloading of music and movies, photographs and embroidery pattern designs are often uploaded and distributed online as well.

"The burden of completing registration forms and sending copies of these images to the U.S. Copyright Office for deposit has created an impossible barrier to the full participation and protection of photographers in the U.S. Copyright system," said David Trust, chief executive officer of professional photographers of America.

Distinction Urged

But lawmakers and public interest groups are concerned that vague language in the bill could let copyright holders encroach on citizens' fair-use rights.

"There is one part of the bill that uses the word 'unauthorized' when it should say 'unlawful,'" Alex Curtis, a policy analyst for the public domain protection group Public Knowledge, said after the hearing. "That's a careful distinction."

Representative Rick Boucher (D-Virginia) expressed similar concerns. Any legislation and education dealing with "the niceties of copyright law" must mention fair-use exceptions, he said.

The House Committee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property will consider amendments to the bill next week. It is sponsored by Representative Lamar Smith (R-Texas).

Stiffer Penalties

Another anti-infringement bill, HR 2752, was introduced on Wednesday and may be combined with Smith's bill. The Author, Consumer, and Computer Owner Protection and Security Act (ACCOPS) is sponsored by two Democratic representatives, John Conyers of Michigan and Howard Berman, California. It allocates $15 million to the Justice Department to investigate and prosecute intellectual property theft.

The bill would impose a prison sentence of up to five years for anyone who makes copyrighted material available over a computer network without permission.

"Any bill that would turn 57 million U.S. citizens into criminals needs to be clearly scrutinized," Philip Corwin, an attorney representing Sharwin Networks' peer-to-peer service Kazaa, says. "The idea of sending a kid who's downloaded a couple of songs to jail is just ridiculous." He says the punishment doesn't fit the crime in the ACCOPS Act.

The Interactive Digital Software Association, however, issued a statement strongly endorsing ACCOPS, saying it strikes a balance between privacy concerns and the rights of copyright holders. The trade association, representing computer and video game software publishers, noted the bill requires distributors of file-swapping software to give notice to consumers that downloading the software may entail security and privacy risks.

Grant Gross of the IDG News Service contributed to this report.