Making Streaming Piracy a Felony, More International Engagement Pitched to IPEC

From harsher criminal penalties for some streaming piracy to more engagement with U.S. trade partners, media groups, tech companies and others had suggestions for the Office of the U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator in docket 2018-19863 as IPEC puts together its next three-year joint strategic plan. Google said IPEC should seek feedback from rights holders on hurdles to suing rogue sites in foreign courts and a modernization of the Copyright Office by putting registration and recordation systems online. Calling streaming piracy via plug-and-play devices an "insidious" threat, NCTA said the U.S. needs to engage trading partners more on adopting and enforcing copyright protections, and IPEC needs to prioritize trying to persuade trading partners to shut illicit streaming services. It said the FCC should use RF equipment authorization powers to deter makers and importers of piracy devices from selling in the U.S. by bringing "stiff" monetary penalties. BSA sought engagement with trade partners. The Copyright Alliance and MPAA urged continued public access to Whois data (see here and here). The alliance said IPEC should back harmonization of criminal penalties for copyright infringement, so infringement of a public performance right -- typically a misdemeanor -- is treated the same as infringement of the reproduction and distribution rights, which can result in felony charges. It said the Trusted Notifier program between MPAA and some domain name registries bore fruit in fighting online infringement, and IPEC should encourage more domain registries and registrars to employ similar arrangements. The Independent Film & TV Alliance and RIAA and National Music Publishers' Association (see here and here) said Congress should classify large-scale streaming piracy as a felony. The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement doesn't include a fair use standard, and IPEC should encourage U.S. trade negotiators to push for one, R Street Institute said, urging roundtable discussions on such issues as how the U.S. can encourage other nations to adopt fair use models. Public Knowledge said IPEC needs to be mindful of how enforcement schemes might affect non-infringing users. PK said enforcement should focus "on targeted bad actors." The Internet Association said the U.S. needs to defend copyright law flexibility that includes fair use and Digital Millennium Copyright Act safe harbors both domestically and internationally. Push back against curtailing intermediary liability protections, IA asked. Tech groups told the U.S. Trade Representative that bolstering IP rights should be a high priority in negotiating a new trade agreement with Japan (see 1811260011).