Title: Transparency in Music Licensing and Ownership Act
Policy area: Commerce

Summary:
Transparency in Music Licensing and Ownership Act
This bill amends federal copyright law to direct the U.S. Copyright Office to establish and maintain a publicly accessible database of nondramatic musical works and sound recordings subject to copyright protection.
It limits available remedies, in copyright infringement actions against certain parties, for a copyright owner who fails to provide or maintain the minimum information required in the database.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3350 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3350

   To amend title 17, United States Code, to establish a database of 
 nondramatic musical works and sound recordings to help entities that 
  wish to publicly perform such works and recordings to identify and 
 compensate the owners of rights in such works and recordings, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 20, 2017

   Mr. Sensenbrenner (for himself, Mr. Chabot, Ms. DelBene, and Mr. 
 Farenthold) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title 17, United States Code, to establish a database of 
 nondramatic musical works and sound recordings to help entities that 
  wish to publicly perform such works and recordings to identify and 
 compensate the owners of rights in such works and recordings, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Transparency in Music Licensing and 
Ownership Act''.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF DATABASE FOR NONDRAMATIC MUSICAL WORKS AND 
              SOUND RECORDINGS.

    (a) Nondramatic Musical Works and Sound Recordings Database.--
Chapter 7 of title 17, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following:
``Sec. 711. Nondramatic musical works and sound recordings database
    ``(a) Establishment and Maintenance.--The Register of Copyrights 
shall establish and maintain an informational database of nondramatic 
musical works and sound recordings subject to protection under this 
title.
    ``(b) Contents.--The database established under subsection (a) 
shall include, at a minimum, for each nondramatic musical work and 
sound recording subject to protection under this title, the following 
information:
            ``(1) The title.
            ``(2) The copyright registration date, if any.
            ``(3) An identification of each owner of the copyright of 
        the work or recording.
            ``(4) An identification of any entity, including a 
        performing rights society, music publisher, or record label, 
        through which the work or recording may be licensed.
            ``(5) The international standard musical work code or the 
        international standard recording code.
            ``(6) The name of each recording artist featured on the 
        work or recording.
            ``(7) Each album title containing the work or recording.
            ``(8) Each catalog number and each label name used on 
        phonorecords of the work made and distributed to the public.
            ``(9) Any other information the Register of Copyrights 
        determines to be appropriate or necessary.
    ``(c) Accessibility.--The Register of Copyrights shall make the 
database established under subsection (a) publicly available, in its 
entirety, without charge, in a format that reflects current 
technological practices. The Register of Copyrights may revise and 
update the technical requirements of the database as necessary to 
ensure continued accessibility.
    ``(d) Limitation on Remedies.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding sections 502 through 
        506, in an action brought under this title for infringement of 
        the exclusive right to perform publicly, reproduce, or 
        distribute a nondramatic musical work or sound recording, the 
        remedies available to a copyright owner that has failed to 
        provide or maintain the information described in subsection (b) 
        shall be limited to--
                    ``(A) an order requiring the infringer to pay to 
                the copyright owner actual damages for the public 
                performance, reproduction, or distribution of the 
                infringed work; and
                    ``(B) injunctive relief to prevent or restrain any 
                infringement alleged in the civil action.
            ``(2) Reliance on database information.--In an action 
        described in paragraph (1), any relief granted by the court 
        shall, to the extent practicable, account for the reliance of 
        an infringer on any information included in the database 
        established under subsection (a).
            ``(3) Applicability.--The limitation described in paragraph 
        (1) only applies to an action brought against the following:
                    ``(A) An establishment.
                    ``(B) A food service or drinking establishment.
                    ``(C) A terrestrial broadcast station licensed as 
                such by the Federal Communications Commission.
                    ``(D) An entity operating under one of the 
                statutory licenses described in section 112, 114, or 
                115.
                    ``(E) An entity performing publicly, reproducing, 
                or distributing musical works or sound recordings in 
                good faith as demonstrated by evidence such as a 
                license agreement in good standing with a performing 
                rights society or other entity authorized to license 
                the use of musical works or sound recordings.
    ``(e) Initial Technical Requirements.--The Register of Copyrights 
shall adopt technical requirements, subject to public notice and 
comment and a 90-day trial period, in the establishment of the database 
described under subsection (a), that ensures the database meets the 
following requirements:
            ``(1) Publicly available from a website maintained by the 
        Copyright Office and hosted from the copyright.gov domain.
            ``(2) Accessible, in a machine-readable format, through 
        both real-time and bulk application programming interfaces.
            ``(3) Searchable through the website described in paragraph 
        (1) and the application programming interfaces described in 
        paragraph (2) by the information required under subsection (b).
            ``(4) Exportable in its entirety to non-proprietary 
        document formats compatible with standard spreadsheet programs, 
        Extensible Markup Language, and such other formats as may be 
        determined by the Register.
    ``(f) Working Group.--
            ``(1) Establishment.--Not later than 45 days after the date 
        of the enactment of this section, the Register of Copyrights 
        shall establish a working group of technical experts 
        representing a wide range of stakeholders to identify, report, 
        and recommend performance objectives, technical capabilities, 
        and technical standards for the database established under 
        subsection (a), including meeting the initial requirements 
        described in subsection (e).
            ``(2) Appointment of members.--The Librarian of Congress, 
        in consultation with the Register of Copyrights, shall appoint 
        the members of the working group, who shall be individuals or 
        organizations representing, in equal parts, owners and 
        licensors of copyrighted works, users and licensees of 
        copyrighted works, and consumers and public interest entities.
            ``(3) Report required.--Not later than 9 months after the 
        date of the enactment of this section, the working group shall 
        submit to the Register of Copyrights a report on the activities 
        and recommendations of the working group described in paragraph 
        (1). Not later than 14 days after receipt of the report, the 
        Register of Copyrights shall make the report and 
        recommendations of the working group subject to public notice 
        and comment.
            ``(4) Copyright office assistance.--The Register of 
        Copyrights may appoint an employee of the Copyright Office--
                    ``(A) to moderate and direct the work of the 
                working group under this subsection; and
                    ``(B) to provide technical assistance to members of 
                the working group, as appropriate.
            ``(5) Initial meeting.--The initial meeting of the working 
        group shall take place not later than 90 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this section.
    ``(g) Technical Review and Updates.--Not later than 3 years after 
the establishment of the database described in subsection (a), and 
every 3 years thereafter, the Register of Copyrights shall review the 
technical capabilities of the database and make any necessary 
revisions. In conducting the review, the Register shall establish a 
working group subject to the requirements described in subsection (f). 
Any updates to the technical capabilities of the database shall be 
subject to public notice and comment and a 90-day trial period.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter 7 of 
title 17, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following new item:

``711. Nondramatic musical works and sound recordings database.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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