Copyright Office, Library of Congress – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with Sec. 103(c)(6) of the Presidio Trust Act, 16 U.S.C. 460bb appendix, and in accordance with the Presidio Trust's bylaws, notice is hereby given that a public meeting of the Presidio Trust Board of Directors will be held commencing 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 8, 2015, at the Officers' Club, 50 Moraga Avenue, Presidio of San Francisco, California. The Presidio Trust was created by Congress in 1996 to manage approximately eighty percent of the former U.S. Army base known as the Presidio, in San Francisco, California. The purposes of this meeting are to take action on the minutes of a previous Board meeting; to provide the Chairperson's report; to provide the Interim Leadership Team's report; to provide partners' reports; to provide committee reports; to take action on the formation and composition of Board committees; to take action on the Audit, Finance, Governance and Human Resources, Planning and Real Estate, and Programs and Communications committee charters; and to receive public comment in accordance with the Trust's Public Outreach Policy. Individuals requiring special accommodation at this meeting, such as needing a sign language interpreter, should contact Mollie Matull at 415.561.5300 prior to October 1, 2015. Time: The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 8, 2015.

The U.S. Copyright Office is undertaking a study at the request of Congress to assess whether and, if so, how the current legal system hinders or prevents copyright owners from pursuing copyright infringement claims that have a relatively small economic value (``small copyright claims''); and recommend potential changes in administrative, regulatory, and statutory authority to improve the adjudication of these small copyright claims. The Office thus seeks comment on how copyright owners have handled small copyright claims and the obstacles they have encountered, as well as potential alternatives to the current legal system that could better accommodate such claims. This is a general inquiry and the Office will publish additional notices on this topic.

The United States Copyright Office is preparing to conduct proceedings in accordance with provisions added by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act which provide that the Librarian of Congress, upon the recommendation of the Register of Copyrights, may exempt certain classes of works from the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. The purpose of this rulemaking proceeding is to determine whether there are particular classes of works as to which users are, or are likely to be, adversely affected in their ability to make noninfringing uses due to the prohibition on circumvention. This notice requests written comments from all interested parties, including representatives of copyright owners, educational institutions, libraries and archives, scholars, researchers and members of the public, in order to elicit evidence on whether noninfringing uses of certain classes of works are, or are likely to be, adversely affected by this prohibition on the circumvention of measures that control access to copyrighted works.

The Copyright Office is extending for one year the interim rule relating to fees for special handling of registration claims that have been pending for at least six months. Currently, the interim rule is set to expire on July 1, 2011, and this extension will change the expiration date to July 1, 2012.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is extending the time in which comments and reply comments can be filed in response to its Notice of Inquiry requesting public input on the desirability and means of bringing sound recordings fixed before February 15, 1972, under Federal jurisdiction.

The Copyright Office is proposing to amend its regulations to set the minimum level of activity required to hold a deposit account at 12 transactions per year; require deposit account holders to maintain a minimum balance in that account; mandate the closure of a deposit account the second time it is overdrawn; and offer deposit account holders the option of automatic replenishment of their account via their bank account or credit card.

The Copyright Office amends its rules governing statements of account for cable systems and satellite carriers to reflect changes resulting from the recent enactment of the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act of 2010.

The Copyright Office makes a nonsubstantial correction to its regulation announcing the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that effectively control access to copyrighted works shall not apply to persons who engage in noninfringing uses of six classes of copyrighted works.

Two material questions of substantive law were referred to the Register of Copyrights concerning the authority of the Register of Copyrights and the Copyright Royalty Judges to determine the constitutionality of 17 U.S.C. 114(f)(5). The Register of Copyrights responded by delivering a Memorandum Opinion to the Copyright Royalty Board on April 30, 2010.

The Copyright Office is seeking comments regarding the application of Title 17 to the termination of certain grants of transfers or licenses of copyright, specifically those for which execution of the grant occurred prior to January 1, 1978 and creation of the work occurred on or after January 1, 1978. The Copyright Office is seeking comments at this time because the deadlines for serving notices of termination for 1978 grants will begin to expire in 2011 and some stakeholders have raised questions with the Office and some Congressional Offices.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is adopting an interim regulation governing mandatory deposit of electronic works published in the United States and available only online. The regulation establishes that online-only works are exempt from mandatory deposit until a demand for deposit of copies or phonorecords of such works is issued by the Copyright Office. It also states that categories of online-only works subject to demand will first be identified in the regulations, and names electronic serials as the first such category for which demands will issue. In addition, the regulation sets forth the process for issuing and responding to a demand for deposit, amends the definition of a ``complete copy'' of a work for purposes of mandatory deposit of online-only works, and establishes new best edition criteria for electronic serials available only online.

The United States Copyright Office (Copyright Office) and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) seek comment on possible solutions to enhance the accessibility of copyrighted works for the benefit of the blind or other persons with disabilities,\1\ including specifically the objectives and text of a draft treaty prepared under the auspices of the World Blind Union and proposed formally at the May 2009 session of the World Intellectual Property Organization's Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights. Interested parties are invited to submit comments on the topics outlined in the supplementary information section of this notice.

The Copyright Office is publishing four agreements which set rates and terms for the reproduction and performance of sound recordings made by certain webcasters under two statutory licenses. Webcasters who meet the eligibility requirements may choose to operate under the statutory licenses in accordance with the rates and terms set forth in the agreements published herein rather than the rates and terms of any determination by the Copyright Royalty Judges.

The Copyright Office is publishing an agreement which sets rates and terms for the reproduction and performance of sound recordings made by certain specified webcasters, under two statutory licenses. Webcasters who meet the eligibility requirements may choose to operate under the statutory licenses in accordance with the rates and terms set forth in the agreement published herein rather than the rates and terms of any determination by the Copyright Royalty Judges.

The Copyright Office is proposing to amend its regulations to require that applications for registration paid for by deposit account debits be submitted electronically using the electronic Copyright Office (eCO) registration system (eService). The Copyright Office is also requesting comment as to whether deposit accounts offer sufficient efficiencies to continue offering this service.

The United States Copyright Office (Copyright Office) and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) are extending the time in which comments and reply comments may be filed on the topic of facilitating access to copyrighted works for ``blind or other persons with disabilities'' \1\ in connection with a forthcoming meeting of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights of the World Intellectual Property Organization.

The United States Copyright Office (Copyright Office) and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) seek comment on the topic of facilitating access to copyrighted works for ``blind or persons with other disabilities'' \1\ in connection with a forthcoming meeting of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights of the World Intellectual Property Organization. Interested parties are invited to submit comments on the topics outlined in the supplementary information section of this notice. The Copyright Office and USPTO also announce a public meeting on the same topic.

The Copyright Office makes royalty rate adjustments for satellite carriers based upon changes in the Consumer Price Index. This year, the change in the Consumer Price Index for the relevant time period was 0.03%, a change so small that the rates remain unaffected for the 2009 licensing period.

The Copyright Office is publishing three agreements which set rates and terms for the reproduction and performance of sound recordings made by certain specified webcasters, under two statutory licenses. Webcasters who meet the eligibility requirements may choose to operate under the statutory licenses in accordance with the rates and terms set forth in the agreements published herein rather than the rates and terms of any determination by the Copyright Royalty Judges.

The Copyright Office published in the Federal Register on December 29, 2008, a notice pertaining to its triennial rulemaking proceeding in accordance with a provision of the Copyright Act which was added by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and which provides that the Librarian of Congress may exempt certain classes of works from the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. This document makes technical corrections to clarify the record of the proposed rulemaking.

The Copyright Office is announcing an interim regulation to clarify the scope and application of the Section 115 compulsory license to make and distribute phonorecords of a musical work by means of digital phonorecord deliveries. The Office seeks comments on the interim regulation.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is preparing to conduct proceedings in accordance with provisions added by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act which provide that the Librarian of Congress may exempt certain classes of works from the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. The purpose of this rulemaking proceeding is to determine whether there are particular classes of works as to which users are, or are likely to be, adversely affected in their ability to make noninfringing uses due to the prohibition on circumvention. This notice requests written comments from all interested parties, including representatives of copyright owners, educational institutions, libraries and archives, scholars, researchers and members of the public, in order to elicit evidence on whether noninfringing uses of certain classes of works are, or are likely to be, adversely affected by this prohibition on the circumvention of measures that control access to copyrighted works.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is announcing receipt of six notices of intent to audit various eligible nonsubscription and new subscription services that transmit sound recordings under statutory licenses. The audits intend to verify statements of account for the year 2005.

The Copyright Office is making non-substantive housekeeping amendments to its regulations to update them and to correct minor errors.

The Copyright Office is amending its rules governing the payment of interest on late or underpaid royalty fees under the Copyright Act to clarify when interest for late and underpayments is due in light of the Copyright Office's electronic funds transfer requirement. In addition, the Copyright Office amends the rules to add text that was inadvertently deleted by a previous rulemaking action. The Copyright Office also makes a technical correction to its satellite carrier requirements to recognize changes made to Section 119 in 2004.

The Register of Copyrights published a document in the Federal Register of February 19, 2008, reviewing the determinations of the Copyright Royalty Judges for setting rates and terms for use of the sections 112 and 114 statutory licenses by New Subscription Services, Preexisting Subscription Services and Preexisting Satellite Digital Audio Radio Services.

The Copyright Office is proposing to make clarifications to its regulations governing the recordation of notices of termination and certain related provisions. This notice seeks public comment on the proposed amendments, which would communicate the Office's practices as to notices of termination that are untimely filed; clarify the fact that a notice of termination is not legally sufficient simply because it has been recorded; update the legibility requirements for all recorded documents, including notices of termination; make minor explanatory edits to the fee schedule for multiple titles within a document (adding notices of termination as an example); and create a new mailing address to which notices of termination should be sent.

The Library of Congress, through the Copyright Office, is announcing an upcoming royalty rate adjustment for satellite carriers based upon changes in the Consumer Price Index.

The Copyright Office is publishing a final list of stations listed in affidavits sent to the Copyright Office in which the owner or licensee of the station attests that the station qualifies as a specialty station in accordance with the Federal Communications Commission`s (FCC) definition of specialty station in effect on June 24, 1981. The list shall be used to verify the specialty station status of those stations identified as such by cable systems on their semi- annual statements of account.

The Copyright Office published in the Federal Register on July 6, 2007, an interim regulation implementing an online copyright registration system. This document makes technical corrections to that interim regulation.

The Copyright Office is extending the time in which reply comments can be filed in response to its Notice of Inquiry requesting information for the preparation of the Section 109 Report to the Congress, as required by the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004.

The Copyright Office is publishing a final list of stations listed in affidavits sent to the Copyright Office in which the owner or licensee of the station attests that the station qualifies as a specialty station in accordance with the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) definition of specialty station in effect on June 24, 1981. Any party may file an objection to an owner's claim of specialty station status with the Copyright Office.

The Copyright Office announces a public roundtable discussion concerning the use of the statutory license to make and distribute digital phonorecords, including for a limited period, and to make phonorecords that facilitate streaming. This discussion is an adjunct to the comments filed in the current rulemaking exploring these issues. The roundtable will also address the statutory requirement to provide notice of intention to obtain the compulsory license.

The United States Copyright Office and the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announce a public roundtable discussion concerning the work at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) on a proposed Treaty on the Protection of the Rights of Broadcasting Organizations. Members of the public are invited to attend and observe the roundtable, or to participate in the roundtable discussion, on the topics outlined in the supplementary information section of this notice.

The Copyright Office is making a technical amendment in the regulations regarding fees for recordation of an interim or amended designation of agent to receive notification of claimed infringement under the Copyright Act.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is announcing receipt of a notice of intent to audit 2005 statements of account concerning the eligible nonsubscription transmissions of sound recordings made by Beethoven.com (``Beethoven'') under statutory licenses.

The Section 108 Study Group announces a public roundtable discussion on certain issues relating to the exceptions and limitations applicable to libraries and archives under the Copyright Act, and seeks written comments on these issues. This notice (1) announces a public roundtable discussion regarding the issues identified in this notice and (2) requests written comments from all interested parties on the issues described in this notice. These issues relate primarily to making and distributing copies pursuant to requests by individual users, as well as to provision of user access to unlicensed digital works.

The Copyright Office is extending the time in which reply comments can be filed in response to its Notice of Inquiry regarding the retransmission of digital television broadcast signals by cable operators under the Copyright Act.

The Copyright Royalty Board, acting pursuant to statute, referred two novel questions of law to the Register of Copyrights. Specifically, the Copyright Royalty Board requested a decision by the Register of Copyrights regarding whether ringtones are subject to the statutory license for making and distributing phonorecords under the Copyright Act, and if so, what legal conditions and/or limitations would apply. The Register of Copyrights, in a timely fashion, transmitted a Memorandum Opinion to the Copyright Royalty Board stating, with certain caveats, that the statutory license applies to ringtones.

The Librarian of Congress is extending, on an interim basis, the existing classes of works with respect to which the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that effectively control access to copyrighted works shall not apply to persons who engage in noninfringing uses.

The Copyright Office is publishing an interim rule governing the correction of errors in certificates of registration of vessel hull designs. If the Office discovers a clerical or typographical error made by the Office on a certificate of registration, the Office will issue a corrected certificate. If an owner of a vessel hull design discovers a clerical or typographical error in a certificate of registration that is a result of error in the application, the owner may submit an application for correction of the certificate of registration.

The Copyright Office is seeking input on possible rules governing the reporting practices of cable operators under the Copyright Act.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is publishing a final rule establishing adjusted fees for its services. The adjusted fees will recover a significant part of the costs to the Office of registering claims and provide full cost recovery for many services provided by the Office which benefit only or primarily the user of that service. The proposed fee increase for preregistration has been eliminated, and the proposed increase for group registration of photographs has been reduced to the fee for basic registration. Adjusted fees will be effective July 1, 2006. This final rule assumes that no legislative action will take place before July, 1, 2006.

This notice of proposed rulemaking is issued to inform the public that the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is considering adoption of new fees for special services and Licensing Division services, and that the Office has submitted to Congress proposed new statutory fees for certain other services. The proposed fees would recover a significant part of the costs to the Office of registering claims and provide full cost recovery for many services provided by the Office which benefit only or primarily the user of that service.

The Section 108 Study Group of the Library of Congress seeks comment on certain issues relating to the exceptions and limitations applicable to libraries and archives under section 108 of the Copyright Act, and announces public roundtable discussions. This notice (1) requests written comments from all interested parties on the specific issues identified in this notice, and (2) announces public roundtable discussions regarding certain of those issues, as described in this notice. The issues covered in this notice relate primarily to eligibility for the section 108 exceptions and copies made for purposes of preservation and replacement.

Pursuant to the Artists' Rights and Theft Prevention Act of 2005, the Copyright Office is publishing an interim regulation governing the preregistration of unpublished works that are being prepared for commercial distribution in classes of works that the Register of Copyrights has determined have had a history of pre-release infringement.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is preparing to conduct proceedings in accordance with section 1201(a)(1) of the Copyright Act, which was added by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and which provides that the Librarian of Congress may exempt certain classes of works from the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. The purpose of this rulemaking proceeding is to determine whether there are particular classes of works as to which users are, or are likely to be, adversely affected in their ability to make noninfringing uses due to the prohibition on circumvention. This notice requests written comments from all interested parties, including representatives of copyright owners, educational institutions, libraries and archives, scholars, researchers and members of the public, in order to elicit evidence on whether noninfringing uses of certain classes of works are, or are likely to be, adversely affected by this prohibition on the circumvention of measures that control access to copyrighted works.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is announcing the termination of two proceedings under the Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel system to distribute royalty fees paid by importers and manufacturers of digital audio recording devices and media who distributed these products in the United States during the period beginning January 1, 2002, and ending on December 31, 2003. The Office is also providing notice that the authority to make determinations regarding the distribution of the 2004 Digital Audio Recording Royalty Funds passed to the Copyright Royalty Board on May 31, 2005.

This notice of policy decision clarifies three matters relating to practices concerning the recordation of documents pertaining to copyrights. First, it clarifies that a document will be indexed only under the titles appearing in the executed document. Second, it announces an interim practice on redaction of documents submitted for recordation, and states the intention of the Copyright Office to issue a notice of inquiry on the subject. Third, it provides notice that the Copyright Office is issuing a revised Document Cover Sheet.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is submitting for public comment a settlement proposal for the adjustment of certain royalty rates for use of the cable statutory license.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is requesting information for the preparation of the first report to the Congress required by the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004.

The Copyright Office has conducted the annual review of its regulations and found non-substantive errors. This document makes technical amendments to correct those errors.

The Copyright Office is amending its rules to require cable operators, satellite carriers, and manufacturers and importers of digital audio recording technology and media to file with the Licensing Division of the Copyright Office a copy of their statement of account together with the original statement of account.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is adopting amendments to the rules governing reports of use of sound recordings under the statutory license for preexisting subscription services.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is publishing the royalty rates for analog television broadcast stations retransmitted by satellite carriers under the section 119 statutory license.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is amending its final regulations concerning group registration of published photographs to limit to 750 the number of photographs that may be identified on continuation sheets submitted with a single application form and filing fee. The regulation continues to place no limit on the number of photographs that may be included in a single group registration when the applicant elects not to use continuation sheets and instead identifies the date of publication for each photograph on the deposited image and the applicant meets the other regulatory requirements for group registration of published photographs. The regulation also clarifies that the date of publication for each photograph may be identified in a text file on the CD-ROM or DVD that contains the photographic images or on a list that accompanies the deposit and provides the publication date for each image.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is proposing amendments to the rules governing reports of use of sound recordings under the statutory license for preexisting subscription services.

The Copyright Office announces a modification to a policy decision announced January 21, 2005, concerning changing the format of certain copyright registration certificates. The modification clarifies how the Office will select applications for registration to be included in a pilot program in which certificates of registration will be generated from registration data scanned from the applications and stored in an electronic information system.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is requesting comment as to whether the 2005 cable statutory license rate adjustment proceeding should take place under the auspices of the Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel (``CARP'') system or the new Copyright Royalty Judge (``CRJ'') system.

The Copyright Office seeks to examine the issues raised by ``orphan works,'' i.e., copyrighted works whose owners are difficult or even impossible to locate. Concerns have been raised that the uncertainty surrounding ownership of such works might needlessly discourage subsequent creators and users from incorporating such works in new creative efforts or making such works available to the public. This notice requests written comments from all interested parties. Specifically, the Office is seeking comments on whether there are compelling concerns raised by orphan works that merit a legislative, regulatory or other solution, and what type of solution could effectively address these concerns without conflicting with the legitimate interests of authors and right holders.

The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is announcing receipt of three notices of intent to audit preexisting subscription services that transmit sound recordings under statutory licenses. The audits intend to verify statements of account for the years 2001, 2002, and 2003.