Copyright Policy

Copyright Infringement Notification

If you believe there is content on Indybay.org that violates copyright law, let us know. Specifically, send us an email or letter that includes substantially the following:

1. A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
2. Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site.
3. Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material.
4. Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact the complaining party, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address at which the complaining party may be contacted.
5. A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
6. A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

The notice should be sent to our designated agent:
Copyright Agent
San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center
115 1/2 Bartlett St, San Francisco. CA 94110
indybay-dmca@riseup.net

We may display a copy of your DMCA notice in place of the removed content.

Note: Under Section 512(f) of the DMCA, any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity is infringing may be subject to liability for damages. One company that sent an infringement notification seeking removal of online materials that were protected by the fair use doctrine was ordered to pay such costs and attorneys fees under this provision. See https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2004/10/01/24832.php. In addition, “in order for a copyright owner to proceed under the DMCA with “a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law,” the owner must evaluate whether the material makes fair use of the copyright.” Lenz v. Universal, 572 F. Supp. 2d 1150, 1155 (2008). Separately, an attorney who claimed infringement for a photograph for which he did not retain a lawful copyright was ordered to pay costs and attorneys fees after his lawsuit was dismissed. See https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/11/07/18763894.php.

The San Francisco Bay Area Independent Media Center reserves the right to review the allegedly infringing material and independently determine whether it is infringing.

Please also note that the information provided in this legal notice, whenever possible, will be forwarded to the person who provided the allegedly infringing content. A copy of this legal notice may also be sent (with your personal information removed) to a third-party that may publish and/or annotate it for noncommercial research and educational purposes.

Counter-Notification: What You Can Do If Your Content Was Removed

If you receive a notice of alleged copyright infringement from us, you may elect to provide counter notification in writing to our Copyright Agent. To be effective, your counter notification must be provided in writing to our Copyright Agent and must include the following information:

If you believe material you posted to Indybay.org was not infringing, you can submit a counter-notice. If you need assistance in determining whether the material was not infringing, please contact an independent attorney to evaluate your situation.

A counter-notification must include the following:

• Identification of the specific URLs of material that Indybay.org has removed or to which Indybay.org has disabled access.
• Your full name, address, telephone number, and email address.
• The statement: "I consent to the jurisdiction of the Federal District Court for the district in which my address is located, or if my address is outside of the United States, the judicial district in which Indybay.org is located, and will accept service of process from the claimant." Indybay.org is located in the Northern District of California.
• The statement: "I swear, under penalty of perjury, that I have a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of a mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled."

A scanned physical signature or a valid electronic signature is fine.

Please note that under Section 512(f) of the Copyright Act, any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity was removed or disabled by mistake or misidentification may be subject to liability.

After we receive your counter-notification, we will forward it to the party who submitted the original claim of copyright infringement. Please note that when we forward the counter-notification, it includes your personal information. If you are concerned about protecting your anonymity, please consult with an attorney about other options.

After we send out the counter-notification, the claimant must then notify us within 10 business days that the claimant has filed an action seeking a court order to restrain you from engaging in infringing activity relating to the material on Indybay.org. If we receive such notification we will be unable to restore the material. If we do not receive such notification, generally we will reinstate the material.

Please also be advised that in appropriate circumstances we terminate repeat infringers.

Please do not make false claims of copyright infringement. Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. §512(f), any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity is infringing may be subject to monetary liability.