natucket shipwreck

Pictured above: OSP Losing DMCA Safe Harbor Protection Off Nantucket, William Bradford, ca. 1860, courtesy Met Museum of Art.

At the end of last year, the U.S. Copyright Office implemented a new online registration system for DMCA agent designations which replaces paper designations with online registration. At the end of this year, agent designations made under the old system will no longer be valid.

This affects online service providers, which includes any company that allows users to post or store material on the company’s systems, such as customer comments and reviews. Under the DMCA, online service providers may avoid liability for copyright infringement if they follow the DMCA’s safe harbor provisions.

Accordingly, all online service providers seeking to retain the benefits of the safe harbor protections of the DMCA must make new agent designations by December 31, 2017.

You can create a registered agent account here on the Copyright Office site.

If we can help, please reach out to one of our attorneys.