seriously what is this? i must have missed it at some point but apparently a new copyright law just came out because a lot of sites i want to see on google (mainly to watch shows and stuff) aren't showing up. i just saw some notices saying they were removed from google.
so i'm wondering if anyone has more info on this. that along with any good sites they still know about in case they get removed for some stupid reason.
This isn't new at all. This was introduced in 1998, and it's prime purpose was to define and collate clear copyright laws for digital content.
Long story short, it originally made software and digital media copyrightable (such as digital music, images and video), and also protected companies from exploitation of such laws.
It makes USERS responsible for the content they upload to a website. That's right, the DMCA protects the actual website from Copyright infringement charges where their users are the culprits. YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Sharenator... they all are irresponsible for their users actions.
For example,if MrPirate makes an account on Sharenator and uploads The Avengers to Sharenator for us all to watch, it's MrPirate's fault, not Sharenator's.
SIDENOTE: DO NOT PROCEED TO UPLOAD ANY FILMS ETC TO SHARENATOR - Though we are technically protected, we do not want to risk server seizure. While this site was created outside the US, the main server and one content server reside within the US.
However, the websites ARE responsible for content they add themselves. So technically, if Paul uploads The Avengers, Sharenator are responsible.
This is where we get to Google. They add search results to the database themselves. The DMCA does not really protect them here, so following recent lawsuits, they now have to remove links to sites containing copyrighted material.
This is where you might be questioning the DMCA - Why did Megaupload.com get taken down?
Well, it turns out Megaupload was taken down ILLEGALLY. The DMCA protects Megaupload from their users uploading copyrighted material. They also gave content producers direct access to delete infringing files. So there was really no problem. Some people think Megaupload specifically was targeted because of a new service they were going to produce (basically offering Music artists a MUCH better deal than the <10% of sales price most artists actually recieve), effectively competing with the ENTIRE Music Industry, all the Record Labels, RIAA and so forth. You can read more about Megaupload and the such at Kim.com
Hope this answered your question! :)
(Edit: The title "DMCA act?" is incorrect. Digital Millennium Copyright Act act.
It's like when people say "PIN Number". That means "Personal Identification Number Number")
FACT: I can't spell Millennium correctly. I just learned it has two L's and two N's :)
FACT: The FBI seized the hard drives illegally. They used an invalid warrant to come to New Zealand and search his house, and also illegally took the hard disks back to the US (where the extradition permit allowed them to view the hard disks within New Zealand only)