The Family Entertainment and Copyright Act, Pub. L. 109–9, 119 Stat. 218 (April 27, 2005), is a federal legislative act regarding copyright that became law in the United States in 2005. The Act consists of two titles or subparts: Title I is called the Artist's Rights and Theft Prevention Act of 2005, which increases penalties for copyright infringement, and Title II is called the Family Movie Act of 2005, which permits the development of technology to "sanitize" potentially offensive DVD and VOD content.

Anyone who "knowingly uses or attempts to use an audiovisual recording device to transmit or make a copy of a ... protected work... from a performance of such work in a motion picture exhibition facility..." may be imprisoned up to three years for a first time offender, and up to six years for a repeat offender, in addition to any fines that may be levied under the U.S. Criminal Code for copyright infringement. This could apply to merely taking a cell phone snapshot of a theatre screen.

With regard to unreleased works intended for public distribution (e.g., beta software or workprints), anyone who makes available a work that the copyright owner expects to distribute commercially, but is not yet distributed, shall be punished if the work is "made available on a computer network accessible to members of the public, if such person knew or should have known that the work was intended for commercial distribution." First time offenders can get up to three years in jail, or five if they committed the offense for financial gain. Repeat offenders can get ten years if the offense was committed for financial gain. These penalties are in addition to any penalties for violating non-disclosure agreements or trade secret law.

Family Movie Act of 2005

This section is an exemption of liability allowing the creation of technology that can edit a DVD or transmitted movie on the fly (during playback) and thus present a censored version of that movie. This provision arose out of a lawsuit between ClearPlay, a Salt Lake City-based company that markets DVD-sanitizing technology, and a number of Hollywood studios and directors. The ClearPlay technology allows a home consumer to screen out up to 14 different categories of objectionable content, such as drug use, sexual situations, or foul language. The act is codified in 17 U.S.C. 110(11)

See also

  • ClearPlay
  • VidAngel

References

  • Text of Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005
  • Analysis of the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005, by The Center for Democracy and Technology
  • Analysis of the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005, by Public Knowledge
  • Anti-camcording law of Japan (Japanese Wikipedia)