By Joel56

YNOT – Think you have no control over how your content gets distributed online? Discouraged because you can’t afford attorneys or third-party copyright-protection services to act on your behalf? Convinced you can’t be effective against pirates on your own?

You’re wrong on all counts. The fact is, webmasters can take several steps to remove illegally uploaded content from peer-to-peer networks, tube sites and other sharing services.

The following has worked for me. I can’t guarantee the same will work for you, but trying can’t hurt … and it just might help.

Become very familiar with the DMCA.
You don’t need a lawyer or expensive third-party services to issue takedown notices under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Do it yourself. DMCA.com, a provider of takedown services, offers a very helpful selection of do-it-yourself tips and tools in a special section of its website. Familiarize yourself with what’s available and the recommended procedures.

Most public sharing-type websites have copyright infringement staff who will remove pirated content once a complaint is made. Using the DMCA complaint procedure takes 15-30 minutes of your time. Within a week, illegally posted content should be removed.

To whom should you direct DMCA complaints?

• The copyright abuse team for the website where the content is posted. Big operations like Yahoo, ImageFap, Flickr and others often post links to their DMCA policies somewhere on their sites. Otherwise, use a general “contact us” address, if one is listed, or research the website’s contact information using WHOIS.
• The internet service provider that owns the website’s IP address (the numerical address associated with the domain name). You can identify the ISP by performing a WHOIS search on the domain name. If you use the Firefox browser, consider installing the Flagfox add-on, which offers a variety of information about every website you visit.
• Any billing companies serving the site that contains the pirated content.
• The pirate site’s hosting company.
• Google. Ask the search giant to remove links to pages containing pirated content using the procedure outlined in Google’s DMCA section. An example of a Google-directed DMCA notice may be found here.

Normally DMCA provisions require a content owner include his or her name and address on a complaint, but many content abuse teams employ website complaint forms that ask for your surname and the city and country where you reside. Most require your email address and the address of your website.

[B]Contact infringers one-on-one.[/B]
Some naïve individuals are under the impression “fair use” is a much broader concept than it actually is. I have encountered users who thought posting collections of “moderate size” (15-20 images) did not require permission from the content owner. If you can find contact info for such people, try explaining to them that they are violating the law. Give them a deadline to remove the items, and make sure they know if they don’t comply, formal DMCA procedures will be pursued. Sometimes, especially with bloggers, the approach works.

Give those you contact a few days to respond, and if they don’t, carry through with your promise to turn up the heat.

[B]Use “quick complaint” links.[/B]
Websites like Imagefap often provide “complaint” links on the pages that display user-submitted content. Alerting the copyright abuse staff to rights infringement is as easy as clicking the link, filling out a form and submitting the information.

[B][B]Spread the word.[/B][/B]
Notify other webmasters when you see their content being distributed illegally. Also ask your website members to notify you when they spot suspected abuses of your rights. Some webmasters have added “Report Theft” links to their sites, thereby performing two functions with one notice: Members know how to protect their investment in your content, and thieves are on notice they are being watched.

Never underestimate the value of community. Your website members can be your biggest allies in the piracy battle. After all, nobody likes to feel cheated by paying for something of value only to watch somebody else get the same material for free.

A few closing thoughts
Copyright protection varies by region. Copyright enforcement does not necessarily require a watermark or logo or other “digital signature” be embedded in the material, but incorporating some kind of visible mark will make the process of proving ownership easier. In addition, watermarks can serve as advertisements for your business, making even stolen content function in a viral-marketing way.

Familiarize yourself with what copyright is and how it works. Here are three of my favorite resources:

• 10 Big Myths about copyright explained
• How to Report Copyright Theft Anonymously
• U.S. Copyright Office – Copyright Law: Chapter 1

I don’t claim to know everything about protecting copyright or fighting pirates, nor do I mean to suggest attorneys and third-party anti-piracy agents are worthless. Both provide valuable services. My point is simply that nobody should feel helpless in the battle, regardless their financial situation. I am dedicated to ending my own nightmare, and you can be, too.

Feel free to add resources and your own experiences or advice in the comments section below. My desire here is to stop allowing freeloaders to get away with murdering website owners and blatantly ignoring copyright law. If enough people fight back in cyberspace, pirates and file-sharers will be pushed to near obscurity. When cyberspace denizens are more inclined to pay for subscriptions to restricted content than to post it without permission where it shouldn’t be, more webmasters and affiliates will be able to make a reasonable living from their hard work.

Please take the time to fight back. Each of us can do little things to help deter illegal use of everyone’s content.