Inducing Infringement of Copyrights Act
Encyclopedia
The Inducing Infringement of Copyrights Act, often abbreviated to just INDUCE Act, is a bill introduced in the United States Senate
which targets "whoever intentionally induces any violation" of copyright. The name came from an earlier version named the "Inducement Devolves into Unlawful Child Exploitation Act."
The proposed legislation was introduced as S. 2560 by Senator Orrin Hatch
on June 22, 2004, and was then referred to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
The Act would amend title 17
of the United States Code
which is related to copyright
s, by adding a subsection to the end of section 501. The subsection would state the following:
The bill is broad and could lead to prosecution of peer to peer software makers, web sites or the overturning of home recording and fair use
rights pioneered by the famous Betamax case. Many critics fear that certain tools used today (such as CD ripping and burning software), and even the Internet and personal computers themselves, could be considered to "intentionally induce" copyright violations, despite their utility for fair use purposes.
The bill is sponsored by former Judiciary Chairman Orrin Hatch
, a Republican senator from Utah
, though it also has support from other Democrats and Republicans, including
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
which targets "whoever intentionally induces any violation" of copyright. The name came from an earlier version named the "Inducement Devolves into Unlawful Child Exploitation Act."
The proposed legislation was introduced as S. 2560 by Senator Orrin Hatch
Orrin Hatch
Orrin Grant Hatch is the senior United States Senator for Utah and is a member of the Republican Party. Hatch served as the chairman or ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee from 1993 to 2005...
on June 22, 2004, and was then referred to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
The Act would amend title 17
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
of the United States Code
United States Code
The Code of Laws of the United States of America is a compilation and codification of the general and permanent federal laws of the United States...
which is related to copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
s, by adding a subsection to the end of section 501. The subsection would state the following:
The bill is broad and could lead to prosecution of peer to peer software makers, web sites or the overturning of home recording and fair use
Fair use
Fair use is a limitation and exception to the exclusive right granted by copyright law to the author of a creative work. In United States copyright law, fair use is a doctrine that permits limited use of copyrighted material without acquiring permission from the rights holders...
rights pioneered by the famous Betamax case. Many critics fear that certain tools used today (such as CD ripping and burning software), and even the Internet and personal computers themselves, could be considered to "intentionally induce" copyright violations, despite their utility for fair use purposes.
The bill is sponsored by former Judiciary Chairman Orrin Hatch
Orrin Hatch
Orrin Grant Hatch is the senior United States Senator for Utah and is a member of the Republican Party. Hatch served as the chairman or ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee from 1993 to 2005...
, a Republican senator from Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, though it also has support from other Democrats and Republicans, including
- Patrick LeahyPatrick LeahyPatrick Joseph Leahy is the senior United States Senator from Vermont and member of the Democratic Party. He is the first and only elected Democratic United States Senator in Vermont's history. He is the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Leahy is the second most senior U.S. Senator,...
, D-Vermont - Bill FristBill FristWilliam Harrison "Bill" Frist, Sr. is an American physician, businessman, and politician. He began his career as an heir and major stockholder to the for-profit hospital chain of Hospital Corporation of America. Frist later served two terms as a Republican United States Senator representing...
, R-Tennessee, Senate Majority Leader - Lindsey GrahamLindsey GrahamLindsey Olin Graham is the senior U.S. Senator from South Carolina and a member of the Republican Party. Previously he served as the U.S. Representative for .-Early life, education and career:...
, R-South Carolina - Barbara BoxerBarbara BoxerBarbara Levy Boxer is the junior United States Senator from California . A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives ....
, D-California
See also
- BALANCEBALANCE ActThe Benefit Authors without Limiting Advancement or Net Consumer Expectations Act of 2003 is a bill that would amend Title 17 of the United States Code, "to safeguard the rights and expectations of consumers who lawfully obtain digital entertainment." The bill was proposed in the 108th Congress...
, Benefit Authors without Limiting Advancement or Net Consumer Expectations Act of 2003 - FAIR USE ActFAIR USE ActThe "Freedom and Innovation Revitalizing United States Entrepreneurship Act of 2007" was a proposed United States copyright law that would have amended Title 17 of the U.S...
, Freedom and Innovation Revitalizing United States Entrepreneurship Act of 2007 - Digital Millennium Copyright ActDigital Millennium Copyright ActThe Digital Millennium Copyright Act is a United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization . It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or services intended to circumvent measures that control access to...
- Intellectual property legislation pending in the United States Congress
- NET ActNET ActThe United States No Electronic Theft Act , a federal law passed in 1997, provides for criminal prosecution of individuals who engage in copyright infringement under certain circumstances, even when there is no monetary profit or commercial benefit from the infringement. Maximum penalties can be...
, the "No Electronic Theft" - Pirate ActPirate ActThe Protecting Intellectual Rights Against Theft and Expropriation Act of 2004, better known as the Pirate Act, was a bill in the United States Congress that would have let federal prosecutors file civil lawsuits against suspected copyright infringers...
External links
- Current text of the INDUCE Act
- Coverage by CNET's Declan McCullagh
- Yale's Law Meme on INDUCE
- Copyright Bill could Stifle Innovation
- Hatch Pushes INDUCE Act
- Corante's "Obsessively Annotated Introduction to the INDUCE Act"
- EFF's mock Induce complaint against Apple Computer et al.