Union Calendar No. 268
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 1861
[Report No. 104–554]
A BILL
To make technical corrections in the Satellite Home
Viewer Act of 1994 and other provisions of title
17, United States Code.
MAY 6, 1996
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Commit-
tee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and
ordered to be printed
IB
Union Calendar No. 268
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 1861
[Report No. 104–554]
To make technical corrections in the Satellite Home Viewer Act of 1994
and other provisions of title 17, United States Code.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 15, 1995
Mr. MOORHEAD introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
MAY 6, 1996
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in ÷italic]
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on June 15, 1995]
A BILL
To make technical corrections in the Satellite Home Viewer
Act of 1994 and other provisions of title 17, United
States Code.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Copyright Clarifications
Act of 1996’’.
SEC. 2. SATELLITE HOME VIEWER ACT.
The Satellite Home Viewer Act of 1994 (Public Law
103–369) is amended as follows:
(1) Section 2(3)(A) is amended to read as fol-
lows:
‘‘(A) in clause (i) by striking ‘12 cents’ and
inserting ‘17.5 cents per subscriber in the case of
superstations that as retransmitted by the sat-
ellite carrier include any program which, if de-
livered by any cable system in the United States,
would be subject to the syndicated exclusivity
rules of the Federal Communications Commis-
sion, and 14 cents per subscriber in the case of
superstations that are syndex-proof as defined in
section 258.2 of title 37, Code of Federal Regula-
tions; and’ ’’.
(2) Section 2(4) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(4) Subsection (c) is amended—
‘‘(A) in paragraph (1)—
‘‘(i) by striking ‘until December 31,
1992,’;
‘‘(ii) by striking ‘(2), (3) or (4)’ and
inserting ‘(2) or (3)’; and
‘‘(iii) by striking the second sentence;
‘‘(B) in paragraph (2)—
‘‘(i) in subparagraph (A) by striking
‘July 1, 1991’ and inserting ‘July 1, 1996’;
and
‘‘(ii) in subparagraph (D) by striking
‘December 31, 1994’ and inserting ‘Decem-
ber 31, 1999, or in accordance with the
terms of the agreement, whichever is later’;
and
‘‘(C) in paragraph (3)—
‘‘(i) in subparagraph (A) by striking
‘December 31, 1991’ and inserting ‘January
1, 1997’;
‘‘(ii) by amending subparagraph (B)
to read as follows:
‘(B) ESTABLISHMENT OF ROYALTY FEES.—
In determining royalty fees under this para-
graph, the copyright arbitration royalty panel
appointed under chapter 8 shall establish fees for
the retransmission of network stations and
superstations that most clearly represent the fair
market value of secondary transmissions. In de-
termining the fair market value, the panel shall
base its decision on economic, competitive, and
‘‘(2) The ‘date of restoration’ of a restored copy-
right is the later of—
‘‘(A) January 1, 1996, the date on which
the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intel-
lectual Property referred to in section 101(d)(15)
of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act enters
into force with respect to the United States, if
the source country of the restored work is a na-
tion adhering to the Berne Convention or a WTO
member country on such date, or
‘‘(B) the date of adherence or proclamation,
in the case of any other source country of the re-
stored work.’’.
(4) Subsection (h)(3) is amended to read as fol-
lows:
‘‘(3) The term ‘eligible country’ means a nation,
other than the United States, that, after the date of
the enactment of the Uruguay Round Agreements
Act—
‘‘(A) becomes a WTO member,
‘‘(B) is or becomes a member of the Berne
Convention, or
‘‘(C) becomes subject to a proclamation
under subsection (g).’’.
SEC. 4. LICENSES FOR NONEXEMPT SUBSCRIPTION TRANS-
MISSIONS.
Section 114(f) of title 17, United States Code, is
amended—
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘, or ending
30 days after the Librarian issues and publishes in
the Federal Register an order adopting or rejecting
the report of the copyright arbitration royalty panel,
if such panel is convened’’ after ‘‘December 31, 2000’’;
and
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and publish
in the Federal Register’’.
SEC. 5. ROYALTY PAYABLE UNDER COMPULSORY LICENSE.
Section 115(c)(3)(D) of title 17, United States Code,
is amended by striking ‘‘and publish in the Federal Reg-
ister’’.
SEC. 6. NEGOTIATED LICENSE FOR JUKEBOXES.
Section 116 of title 17, United States Code, is amend-
ed—
(1) by amending subsection (b)(2) to read as fol-
lows:
‘‘(2) ARBITRATION.—Parties not subject to such
a negotiation may determine the result of the negotia-
tion by arbitration in accordance with the provisions
of chapter 8.’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section:
‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the follow-
ing terms mean the following:
‘‘(1) A ‘coin-operated phonorecord player’ is a
machine or device that—
‘‘(A) is employed solely for the performance
of nondramatic musical works by means of
phonorecords upon being activated by the inser-
tion of coins, currency, tokens, or other monetary
units or their equivalent;
‘‘(B) is located in an establishment making
no direct or indirect charge for admission;
‘‘(C) is accompanied by a list which is com-
prised of the titles of all the musical works avail-
able for performance on it, and is affixed to the
phonorecord player or posted in the establish-
ment in a prominent position where it can be
readily examined by the public; and
‘‘(D) affords a choice of works available for
performance and permits the choice to be made
by the patrons of the establishment in which it
is located.
‘‘(2) An ‘operator’ is any person who, alone or
jointly with others—
‘‘(A) owns a coin-operated phonorecord
player;
‘‘(B) has the power to make a coin-operated
phonorecord player available for placement in
an establishment for purposes of public perform-
ance; or
‘‘(C) has the power to exercise primary con-
trol over the selection of the musical works made
available for public performance on a coin-oper-
ated phonorecord player.’’.
SEC. 7. LIMITATIONS ON EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS; COMPUTER
PROGRAMS.
Section 117 of title 17, United States Code, is amended
as follows:
(1) Strike ‘‘Notwithstanding’’ and insert the following:
‘‘(a) MAKING OF ADDITIONAL COPY OR ADAPTATION
BY OWNER OF COPY.—Notwithstanding’’.
(2) Strike ‘‘Any exact’’ and insert the following:
‘‘(b) LEASE, SALE, OR OTHER TRANSFER OF ADDI-
TIONAL COPY OR ADAPTATION.—Any exact’’.
(3) Add at the end the following:
‘‘(c) MACHINE MAINTENANCE OR REPAIR.—Notwith-
standing the provisions of section 106, it is not an infringe-
ment for the owner or lessee of a machine to make or author-
ize the making of a copy of a computer program if such
copy is made solely by virtue of the activation of a machine
that lawfully contains an authorized copy of the computer
program, for purposes only of maintenance or repair of that
machine, provided that—
‘‘(1) such new copy is used in no other manner
and is destroyed immediately after the maintenance
or repair is completed, and
‘‘(2) with respect to any computer program or
part thereof that is not necessary for that machine to
be activated, such program or part thereof is not
accessed or used other than to make such new copy by
virtue of the activation of the machine.
‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—
‘‘(1) the term ‘maintenance’ of a machine means
servicing the machine in order to make it work in ac-
cordance with its original specifications and any
changes to those specifications authorized for that ma-
chine; and
‘‘(2) the term ‘repair’ of a machine means restor-
ing it to the state of working in accordance with its
original specifications and any changes to those speci-
fications authorized for that machine.’’.
SEC. 8. PUBLIC BROADCASTING COMPULSORY LICENSE.
Section 118 of title 17, United States Code, is amended
as follows:
(1) Subsection (b) is amended by striking para-
graph (1) and redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3)
as paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively.
(2) Subsection (b)(2) (as redesignated by para-
graph (1) of this section) is amended by striking
‘‘(2)’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘(1)’’.
(3) Subsection (e) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(e)(1) Except as expressly provided in this subsection,
this section shall not apply to works other than those speci-
fied in subsection (b).
‘‘(2) Owners of copyright in nondramatic literary
works and public broadcasting entities may, during the
course of voluntary negotiations, agree among themselves,
respectively, as to the terms and rates of royalty payments
without liability under the antitrust laws. Any such terms
and rates of royalty payments shall be effective upon being
filed in the Copyright Office, in accordance with regulations
that the Register of Copyrights shall prescribe.’’.
SEC. 9. REGISTRATION AND INFRINGEMENT ACTIONS.
Section 411(b)(1) of title 17, United States Code, is
amended to read as follows:
‘‘(1) serves notice upon the infringer, not less
than 48 hours before such fixation, identifying the
work and the specific time and source of its first
transmission, and declaring an intention to secure
copyright in the work; and’’.
SEC. 10. COPYRIGHT OFFICE FEES.
(a) FEE INCREASES.—Section 708(b) of title 17, Unit-
ed States Code, is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(b) In calendar year 1996 and in any subsequent cal-
endar year, the Register of Copyrights, by regulation, may
increase the fees specified in subsection (a) in the following
manner:
‘‘(1) The Register shall conduct a study of the
costs incurred by the Copyright Office for the registra-
tion of claims, the recordation of documents, and the
provision of services. The study shall also consider the
timing of any increase in fees and the authority to
use such fees consistent with the budget.
‘‘(2) The Register shall have discretion to in-
crease fees up to the reasonable costs incurred by the
Copyright Office for the services described in para-
graph (1) plus a reasonable inflation adjustment to
account for any estimated increase in costs.
‘‘(3) Any newly established fee based on para-
graph (2) shall be rounded off to the nearest dollar,
or for a fee less than $12, rounded off to the nearest
50 cents.
‘‘(4) The fees shall be fair and equitable and give
due consideration to the objectives of the copyright
system.
‘‘(5) If upon completion of the study, the Reg-
ister determines that the fees should be increased, the
Register shall prepare a proposed fee schedule and
submit the schedule with the accompanying economic
analysis to the Congress. The fees proposed by the
Register may be instituted after the end of 120 days
after the schedule is submitted to the Congress unless,
within that 120-day period, a law is enacted stating
in substance that the Congress does not approve the
schedule.’’.
(b) DEPOSIT OF FEES.—Section 708(d) of such title
is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(d)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), all fees
received under this section shall be deposited by the Register
of Copyrights in the Treasury of the United States and shall
be credited to the appropriations for necessary expenses of
the Copyright Office. Such fees that are collected shall re-
main available until expended. The Register may, in ac-
cordance with regulations that he or she shall prescribe, re-
fund any sum paid by mistake or in excess of the fee re-
quired by this section.
‘‘(2) In the case of fees deposited against future serv-
ices, the Register of Copyrights shall request the Secretary
of the Treasury to invest in interest-bearing securities in
the United States Treasury any portion of the fees that,
as determined by the Register, is not required to meet cur-
rent deposit account demands. Funds shall be invested in
securities that permit funds to be available to the Copyright
Office at all times if they are determined to be necessary
to meet current deposit account demands. Such investments
shall be in public debt securities with maturities suitable
to the needs of the fund, as determined by the Register of
Copyrights, and bearing interest at rates determined by the
Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration current
market yields on outstanding marketable obligations of the
United States of comparable maturities.
‘‘(3) The income on such investments shall be deposited
in the Treasury of the United States and shall be credited
to the appropriations for necessary expenses of the Copy-
right Office.’’.
SEC. 11. COPYRIGHT ARBITRATION ROYALTY PANELS.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT AND PURPOSE.—Section 801 of
title 17, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in subsection (b)(1) by striking ‘‘and 116’’ in
the first sentence and inserting ‘‘116, and 119’’;
(2) in subsection (c) by inserting after ‘‘panel’’
at the end of the sentence the following:
‘‘, including—
‘‘(1) authorizing the distribution of those royalty
fees collected under sections 111, 119, and 1005 that
the Librarian has found are not subject to con-
troversy; and
‘‘(2) accepting or rejecting royalty claims filed
under sections 111, 119, and 1007 on the basis of
timeliness or the failure to establish the basis for a
claim’’; and
(3) by amending subsection (d) to read as fol-
lows:
‘‘(d) SUPPORT AND REIMBURSEMENT OF ARBITRATION
PANELS.—The Librarian of Congress, upon the rec-
ommendation of the Register of Copyrights, shall provide
the copyright arbitration royalty panels with the necessary
administrative services related to proceedings under this
chapter, and shall reimburse the arbitrators at such inter-
vals and in such manner as the Librarian shall provide
by regulation. Each such arbitrator is an independent con-
tractor acting on behalf of the United States, and shall be
paid pursuant to a signed agreement between the Library
of Congress and the arbitrator. Payments to the arbitrators
shall be considered costs incurred by the Library of Congress
and the Copyright Office for purposes of section 802(h)(1).’’.
(b) PROCEEDINGS.—Section 802(h)(1) of title 17,
United States Code, is amended—
(1) by amending the heading to read ‘‘DEDUC-
TION OF COSTS OF LIBRARY OF CONGRESS AND COPY-
RIGHT OFFICE FROM ROYALTY FEES.—’’;
(2) in the first sentence by inserting ‘‘to support
distribution proceedings’’ after ‘‘Copyright Office’’;
and
(3) by amending the third sentence to read as
follows: ‘‘In ratemaking proceedings, the Librarian of
Congress and the Copyright Office may assess their
reasonable costs directly to the parties to the most re-
cent relevant arbitration proceeding, 50 percent of the
costs to the parties who would receive royalties from
the royalty rate adopted in the proceeding and 50
percent of the costs to the parties who would pay the
royalty rate so adopted, subject to the discretion of the
arbitrators to assess costs under subsection (c).’’.
SEC. 12. DIGITAL AUDIO RECORDING DEVICES AND MEDIA.
Section 1007(b) of title 17, United States Code, is
amended by striking ‘‘Within 30 days after’’ in the first
sentence and inserting ‘‘After’’.
SEC. 13. TREATMENT OF PRE-1978 PUBLICATION OF SOUND
RECORDINGS.
Section 303 of title 17, United States Code, is amend-
ed—
(1) by striking ‘‘Copyright’’ and inserting ‘‘(a)
Copyright’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(b) The distribution before January 1, 1978, of a pho-
norecord shall not for any purpose constitute a publication
of the musical work embodied therein.’’.
SEC. 14. CONFORMING AMENDMENT.
Paragraph (5) of section 4 of the Digital Performance
Right in Sound Recordings Act of 1995 is redesignated as
paragraph (4).
SEC. 15. EFFECTIVE DATES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection
(b), the amendments made by this Act shall take effect on
the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b) SATELLITE HOME VIEWER ACT.—The amend-
ments made by section 1 shall be effective as if enacted as
part of the Satellite Home Viewer Act of 1994 (Public Law
103–369).