I. Overview
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), enacted in 1998,
addresses a variety of issues related to digital works and online uses.
The statute prohibits, among other things, activity that circumvents
copy-protection technologies, as well as the removal or alteration of
“copyright management information” (CMI) from copyrighted works.
The remedies for circumvention and CMI violations are found in 17
U.S.C. § 1203. They include plaintiff’s actual damages, defendant’s prof-
its, and statutory damages. But, as discussed in section II.B below, the
calculation of DMCA damages differs from the calculation of the analo-
gous remedies applicable to copyright infringement under section 504.
Separately, section 512 of the DMCA provides online service provid-
ers with “safe harbor” immunity from infringement liability as long
as they implement and follow statutory takedown procedures. As dis-
cussed in section III below, the DMCA provides a cause of action for
77
CHAPTER 5
Damages under the Digital
Millennium Copyright Act
Stahl_CRRemedies_20130130_08-47_Final Pass.indd 77 2/7/14 11:05 AM
