The DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) has become a well-known law in file-sharing circles. Its use has become one of the main weapons of the RIAA and MPAA, who use it to launch "John Doe" lawsuits and eventually force ISPs to divulge their customer’s personal information.

In addition to more familiar uses, the DMCA protects copyright holders from unauthorized duplication of copyrighted material, restricts or prevents the circumvention of copy protection and provides ISPs with a "safe haven" from copyright infringement.

While many associate the DMCA with file-sharing, it can also be used by any content owner to protect their copyright interests - whether online or off. Website administrator Daniel Papasian learned this the hard way.

Daniel Papsian created a parody website of WalmartFoundation.org, dubbed WalMart-Foundation.org. Papsian's website was created as part of an art class project in Carnegie Mellon University. The site used graphics from the original Wal-Mart site to create his parody site. Mr. Papsian’s parody site challenged Wal-Mart’s self-promoting image as a family and community oriented business. While the sites were similar, the content was not. From Mr. Papsian's statement on WalMart-Foundation.org:

"For several days in April, this address, www.walmart-foundation.org, hosted a parody of the Wal-Mart Foundation's website. I created a derivative work by changing all of the text and several of the images from the original site. The goal was to make the site look like it could be a real site from a company like Wal-Mart, but have text that was so ridiculous that anyone who read it would realize that it was absurd. If anyone believed it to be a real Wal-Mart site, that is only a testament to the degree of absurdity that exists within corporate America today."

Enclosed in the DMCA violation notice sent to Papsian's ISP, the original content of his website was captured. Since the violation notice, the content of the website has been radically altered. All of the graphics and parody content have been removed. Currently his statement regarding Wal-Mart's "censorship" and a graphic depicting Wal-Mart's stampede over small businesses replaces the parody content.

Mr. Papsian makes the point that Wal-Mart is attempting to aggressively repair its name in the American household. By promoting itself as a family and community oriented site, it may get people to think Wal-Mart is a virtuous corporation. However, Mr. Papsian contends that his site counters that notion, and since Wal-Mart cannot sue him for the site's content, they could go after him for copyright violations.

If this logic proves true, it would be an interesting twist as Wal-Mart's attempt to silence Mr. Papsian's has only gained him more attention.

This story is filed in these Slyck News categories
Legal/Courtroom :: Other Lawsuits

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