Library of Congress December 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The United States Copyright Office is conducting the sixth triennial rulemaking proceeding under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (``DMCA'') concerning possible exemptions to the DMCA's prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. On September 17, 2014, the Office published a Notice of Inquiry requesting petitions for proposed exemptions, and it has received forty-four petitions in response. With this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Office is initiating three rounds of public comment on exemptions proposed in the petitions. Interested parties are invited to make full legal and evidentiary submissions in support of or opposition to the proposed exemptions, in accordance with the requirements set forth below. The Office is providing a ``long comment'' form for this purpose. The Office is also offering members of the public the opportunity to express general support for or opposition to any of the proposals via a ``short comment'' form. Commenters should carefully review the legal and evidentiary standards for the granting of exemptions under the DMCA, which are set forth in the September Notice of Inquiry. Commenters should also review the guidance provided in this document regarding specific areas of legal and factual interest with respect to each proposed exemption or category of exemptions, and the types of evidence that commenters may wish to submit for the record. This document also provides information concerning the recommended format and content for submissions, including documentary and multimedia evidence.