Court Opinions
State Laws
|
Copyrights - 17 USC Section 501
Legal Research Home >
US Lawyer > Copyrights > Copyrights - 17 USC Section 501
01/19/04
Sec. 501. Infringement of copyright
(a) Anyone who violates any of the exclusive rights of the
copyright owner as provided by sections 106 through 122 or of the
author as provided in section 106A(a), or who imports copies or
phonorecords into the United States in violation of section 602, is
an infringer of the copyright or right of the author, as the case
may be. For purposes of this chapter (other than section 506), any
reference to copyright shall be deemed to include the rights
conferred by section 106A(a). As used in this subsection, the term
"anyone" includes any State, any instrumentality of a State, and
any officer or employee of a State or instrumentality of a State
acting in his or her official capacity. Any State, and any such
instrumentality, officer, or employee, shall be subject to the
provisions of this title in the same manner and to the same extent
as any nongovernmental entity.
(b) The legal or beneficial owner of an exclusive right under a
copyright is entitled, subject to the requirements of section 411,
to institute an action for any infringement of that particular
right committed while he or she is the owner of it. The court may
require such owner to serve written notice of the action with a
copy of the complaint upon any person shown, by the records of the
Copyright Office or otherwise, to have or claim an interest in the
copyright, and shall require that such notice be served upon any
person whose interest is likely to be affected by a decision in the
case. The court may require the joinder, and shall permit the
intervention, of any person having or claiming an interest in the
copyright.
(c) For any secondary transmission by a cable system that
embodies a performance or a display of a work which is actionable
as an act of infringement under subsection (c) of section 111, a
television broadcast station holding a copyright or other license
to transmit or perform the same version of that work shall, for
purposes of subsection (b) of this section, be treated as a legal
or beneficial owner if such secondary transmission occurs within
the local service area of that television station.
(d) For any secondary transmission by a cable system that is
actionable as an act of infringement pursuant to section 111(c)(3),
the following shall also have standing to sue: (i) the primary
transmitter whose transmission has been altered by the cable
system; and (ii) any broadcast station within whose local service
area the secondary transmission occurs.
(e) With respect to any secondary transmission that is made by a
satellite carrier of a performance or display of a work embodied in
a primary transmission and is actionable as an act of infringement
under section 119(a)(5), a network station holding a copyright or
other license to transmit or perform the same version of that work
shall, for purposes of subsection (b) of this section, be treated
as a legal or beneficial owner if such secondary transmission
occurs within the local service area of that station.
(f)(1) With respect to any secondary transmission that is made by
a satellite carrier of a performance or display of a work embodied
in a primary transmission and is actionable as an act of
infringement under section 122, a television broadcast station
holding a copyright or other license to transmit or perform the
same version of that work shall, for purposes of subsection (b) of
this section, be treated as a legal or beneficial owner if such
secondary transmission occurs within the local market of that
station.
(2) A television broadcast station may file a civil action
against any satellite carrier that has refused to carry television
broadcast signals, as required under section 122(a)(2), to enforce
that television broadcast station's rights under section 338(a) of
the Communications Act of 1934.
HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES
HOUSE REPORT NO. 94-1476
The bill, unlike the present law, contains a general statement of
what constitutes infringement of copyright. Section 501(a)
identifies a copyright infringer as someone who "violates any of
the exclusive rights of the copyright owner as provided by sections
106 through 118" of the bill, or who imports copies or phonorecords
in violation of section 602. Under the latter section an
unauthorized importation of copies or phonorecords acquired abroad
is an infringement of the exclusive right of distribution under
certain circumstances.
The principle of the divisibility of copyright ownership,
established by section 201(d), carries with it the need in
infringement actions to safeguard the rights of all copyright
owners and to avoid a multiplicity of suits. Subsection (b) of
section 501 enables the owner of a particular right to bring an
infringement action in that owner's name alone, while at the same
time insuring to the extent possible that the other owners whose
rights may be affected are notified and given a chance to join the
action.
The first sentence of subsection (b) empowers the "legal or
beneficial owner of an exclusive right" to bring suit for "any
infringement of that particular right committed while he or she is
the owner of it." A "beneficial owner" for this purpose would
include, for example, an author who had parted with legal title to
the copyright in exchange for percentage royalties based on sales
or license fees.
The second and third sentences of section 501(b), which
supplement the provisions of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
[Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure], give the courts
discretion to require the plaintiff to serve notice of the
plaintiff's suit on "any person shown, by the records of the
Copyright Office or otherwise, to have or claim an interest in the
copyright"; where a person's interest "is likely to be affected by
a decision in the case" a court order requiring service of notice
is mandatory. As under the Federal rules, the court has discretion
to require joinder of "any person having or claiming an interest in
the copyright"; but, if any such person wishes to become a party,
the court must permit that person's intervention.
In addition to cases involving divisibility of ownership in the
same version of a work, section 501(b) is intended to allow a court
to permit or compel joinder of the owners of rights in works upon
which a derivative work is based.
Section 501 contains two provisions conferring standing to sue
under the statue upon broadcast stations in specific situations
involving secondary transmissions by cable systems. Under
subsection (c), a local television broadcaster licensed to transmit
a work can sue a cable system importing the same version of the
work into the broadcaster's local service area in violation of
section 111(c). Subsection (d) deals with cases arising under
section 111(c)(3), the provision dealing with substitution or
alteration by a cable system of commercials or other programming;
in such cases standing to sue is also conferred on: (1) the primary
transmitter whose transmission has been altered by the cable
system, and (2) any broadcast stations within whose local service
area the secondary transmission occurs. These provisions are linked
to section 509, a new provision on remedies for alteration of
programming by cable systems, discussed below.
Vicarious Liability for Infringing Performances. The committee
has considered and rejected an amendment to this section intended
to exempt the proprietors of an establishment, such as a ballroom
or night club, from liability for copyright infringement committed
by an independent contractor, such as an orchestra leader. A
well-established principle of copyright law is that a person who
violates any of the exclusive rights of the copyright owner is an
infringer, including persons who can be considered related or
vicarious infringers. To be held a related or vicarious infringer
in the case of performing rights, a defendant must either actively
operate or supervise the operation of the place wherein the
performances occur, or control the content of the infringing
program, and expect commercial gain from the operation and either
direct or indirect benefit from the infringing performance. The
committee has decided that no justification exists for changing
existing law, and causing a significant erosion of the public
performance right.
AMENDMENTS
2002 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 107-273 substituted "122" for "121".
1999 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 106-44 substituted "121" for "118".
Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 106-113, Sec. 1000(a)(9) [title I, Sec.
1011(b)(3)], substituted "performance or display of a work embodied
in a primary transmission" for "primary transmission embodying the
performance or display of a work".
Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 106-113, Sec. 1000(a)(9) [title I, Sec.
1002(b)], added subsec. (f).
1990 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 101-650 inserted "or of the author as
provided in section 106A(a)" after "118" and substituted "copyright
or right of the author, as the case may be. For purposes of this
chapter (other than section 506), any reference to copyright shall
be deemed to include the rights conferred by section 106A(a)." for
"copyright."
Pub. L. 101-553 inserted sentences at end defining "anyone" and
providing that any State and any instrumentality, officer, or
employee be subject to the provisions of this title in the same
manner and to the same extent as any nongovernmental entity.
1988 - Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 100-568 substituted "section 411" for
"sections 205(d) and 411".
Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 100-667 added subsec. (e).
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1999 AMENDMENT
Amendment by section 1000(a)(9) [title I, Sec. 1002(b)] of Pub.
L. 106-113 effective July 1, 1999, and amendment by section
1000(a)(9) [title I, Sec. 1011(b)(3)] of Pub. L. 106-113 effective
Nov. 29, 1999, see section 1000(a)(9) [title I, Sec. 1012] of Pub.
L. 106-113, set out as a note under section 101 of this title.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1990 AMENDMENTS
Amendment by Pub. L. 101-650 effective 6 months after Dec. 1,
1990, see section 610 of Pub. L. 101-650, set out as an Effective
Date note under section 106A of this title.
Section 3 of Pub. L. 101-553 provided that: "The amendments made
by this Act [enacting section 511 of this title and amending this
section and sections 910 and 911 of this title] shall take effect
with respect to violations that occur on or after the date of the
enactment of this Act [Nov. 15, 1990]."
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1988 AMENDMENTS
Amendment by Pub. L. 100-667 effective Jan. 1, 1989, see section
206 of Pub. L. 100-667, set out as an Effective Date note under
section 119 of this title.
Amendment by Pub. L. 100-568 effective Mar. 1, 1989, with any
cause of action arising under this title before such date being
governed by provisions in effect when cause of action arose, see
section 13 of Pub. L. 100-568, set out as a note under section 101
of this title.
CAUSES OF ACTION ARISING UNDER PREDECESSOR PROVISIONS
Section 112 of Pub. L. 94-553 provided that: "All causes of
action that arose under title 17 before January 1, 1978, shall be
governed by title 17 as it existed when the cause of action arose."
Last modified: April 20, 2006
|
|
