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Advanced Copyright Issues on the Internet - Fenwick & West LLP

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ight of public performance and <strong>the</strong> right of reproducti<strong>on</strong>. The right of public performance ispotentially implicated because Secti<strong>on</strong> 101 of <strong>the</strong> copyright statute defines <strong>the</strong> publicperformance of a work to include <strong>the</strong> following: “to transmit or o<strong>the</strong>rwise communicate aperformance ... of <strong>the</strong> work … to <strong>the</strong> public, by means of any device or process, whe<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong>members of <strong>the</strong> public capable of receiving <strong>the</strong> performance … receive it in <strong>the</strong> same place or inseparate places and at <strong>the</strong> same time or at different times.” 2157 The right of reproducti<strong>on</strong> ispotentially implicated because interim whole or partial copies of <strong>the</strong> work are made in variousRAM memories in <strong>the</strong> course of transmissi<strong>on</strong> of <strong>the</strong> work through <strong>the</strong> <strong>Internet</strong>. 2158 In additi<strong>on</strong>,copies of <strong>the</strong> works available for streaming generally must be stored <strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong>e or more serversoperated by <strong>the</strong> streaming vendor.Significant legal disputes have arisen over <strong>the</strong> applicati<strong>on</strong> of <strong>the</strong> rights of publicperformance and reproducti<strong>on</strong>, as well as <strong>the</strong> compulsory statutory licenses afforded by <strong>the</strong>copyright statute, to streaming and limited downloads. The nature of <strong>the</strong>se disputes, and <strong>the</strong>cases decided to date with respect to <strong>the</strong>m, are discussed below.1. The Digital Performance Right – The Secti<strong>on</strong> 114(d)(1) Exempti<strong>on</strong> andStreaming by FCC-Licensed BroadcastersSecti<strong>on</strong> 106(4) of <strong>the</strong> copyright statute grants <strong>the</strong> owner of copyright in a work <strong>the</strong>exclusive right to perform <strong>the</strong> work publicly. The right does not apply, however, to soundrecordings, 2159 except with respect to certain public performances by digital transmissi<strong>on</strong>. Inparticular, <strong>the</strong> Digital Performance Right in Sound Recordings Act of 1995 (DPRA) 2160 createdas of February 1, 1996 a limited right to perform a sound recording by means of a “digital audiotransmissi<strong>on</strong>.” 2161Certain digital transmissi<strong>on</strong>s of performances are exempt from this right under Secti<strong>on</strong>114(d)(1). Specifically, <strong>the</strong> performance of a sound recording publicly by means of a digitalaudio transmissi<strong>on</strong> (i) as part of a “n<strong>on</strong>subscripti<strong>on</strong> broadcast transmissi<strong>on</strong>,” 2162 (ii) as part of aretransmissi<strong>on</strong> of a n<strong>on</strong>subscripti<strong>on</strong> broadcast transmissi<strong>on</strong> (subject to certain limitati<strong>on</strong>s in <strong>the</strong>2157 17 U.S.C. § 101.2158 See <strong>the</strong> analysis in Secti<strong>on</strong>s I.A.1 & I.A.2 above.2159 17 U.S.C. § 114(a).2160 Pub. L. No. 104-39, 109 Stat. 336 (codified at 17 U.S.C. §§ 106, 114, 115).2161 See 17 U.S.C. § 106(6). Secti<strong>on</strong> 114(j)(5) of <strong>the</strong> copyright statute defines a “digital audio transmissi<strong>on</strong>” tomean “a digital transmissi<strong>on</strong> as defined in secti<strong>on</strong> 101, that embodies <strong>the</strong> transmissi<strong>on</strong> of a sound recording.This term does not include <strong>the</strong> transmissi<strong>on</strong> of any audiovisual work.” Secti<strong>on</strong> 101 defines “digitaltransmissi<strong>on</strong>” as “a transmissi<strong>on</strong> in whole or in part in a digital or o<strong>the</strong>r n<strong>on</strong>-analog format.”2162 17 U.S.C. § 114(d)(1)(A). A “broadcast” transmissi<strong>on</strong> is “a transmissi<strong>on</strong> made by a terrestrial broadcast stati<strong>on</strong>licensed as such by <strong>the</strong> Federal Communicati<strong>on</strong>s Commissi<strong>on</strong>.” Id. § 114(j)(3). A "n<strong>on</strong>subscripti<strong>on</strong>"transmissi<strong>on</strong> is “any transmissi<strong>on</strong> that is not a subscripti<strong>on</strong> transmissi<strong>on</strong>.” Id. § 114(j)(9). A "subscripti<strong>on</strong>"transmissi<strong>on</strong> is “a transmissi<strong>on</strong> that is c<strong>on</strong>trolled and limited to particular recipients, and for whichc<strong>on</strong>siderati<strong>on</strong> is required to be paid or o<strong>the</strong>rwise given by or <strong>on</strong> behalf of <strong>the</strong> recipient to receive <strong>the</strong>transmissi<strong>on</strong> or a package of transmissi<strong>on</strong>s including <strong>the</strong> transmissi<strong>on</strong>.” Id. § 114(j)(14).- 471 -

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