QUESTION
Posted copyrighted song on website mytinyphone.com ringtone website. Is this mainly a warning? Will I be ok if I don''t do it again?
Asked on Aug 19th, 2012 on Entertainment Law - Michigan
More details to this question:
I uploaded a ringtone to my mytinyphone account awhile ago and I haven''t used the site since. I''ve just gotten an email from them saying my ringtone was removed for copyright infringement. I got this email when they deleted it.
Here''s what it said:
"We received a notice pursuant to the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) that certain content that you uploaded to the Mytinyphone site violates copyright. Based on the request, we removed the content. Uploading content in violation of copyright breaches our copyright policy and the terms of use. Also, you should be aware that violations of copyright may lead to legal action by the copyright owners or their representatives with serious consequences. We reserve the right to terminate your account for repeat violations."
Are they trying to scare me? Will I be ok if I never do it again? I''ve been worried all night and it ruined my sleep and everything. Thousands of other users upload copyrighted content and get it removed as well.
1 ANSWER
Sports Attorney serving Sunrise, FL
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Nancy J. Flint Attorney at Law, P.A.
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The DMCA allows owners of copyrighted works to contact online sites and complain that their copyrights are being infringed. Once the online site receives such a notice, they are under an obligation to take the content down and content the person who posted the content, which was you. You should have the choice to contest the accusation, but if it really was someone else's work, you run a risk of getting sued by the copyright owner if you put the content back up. The website is not trying to scare you, it is protecting itself against getting sued for copyright infringement. Whether you can continue to post on that website is determined by the Terms and Conditions, so read those and see if your account is still active. Most websites freeze accounts if there are multiple copyright infringement complaints. It looks as if that is this website's policy as well, so be careful about posting other people's content in the future if you don't have permission.
Answered on Sep 29th, 2012 at 11:57 AM