17 USC § 1101 - Unauthorized fixation and trafficking in sound recordings and music videos

(a) Unauthorized Acts.— Anyone who, without the consent of the performer or performers involved—

(1) fixes the sounds or sounds and images of a live musical performance in a copy or phonorecord, or reproduces copies or phonorecords of such a performance from an unauthorized fixation,

(2) transmits or otherwise communicates to the public the sounds or sounds and images of a live musical performance, or

(3) distributes or offers to distribute, sells or offers to sell, rents or offers to rent, or traffics in any copy or phonorecord fixed as described in paragraph (1), regardless of whether the fixations occurred in the United States,

shall be subject to the remedies provided in sections 502 through 505, to the same extent as an infringer of copyright.

(b) Definition.— In this section, the term “traffic” has the same meaning as in section 2320 (e)  ^[1] of title 18.

(c) Applicability.— This section shall apply to any act or acts that occur on or after the date of the enactment of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act.

(d) State Law Not Preempted.— Nothing in this section may be construed to annul or limit any rights or remedies under the common law or statutes of any State.

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[1]  See References in Text note below.

Source

(Added Pub. L. 103–465, title V, § 512(a),Dec. 8, 1994, 108 Stat. 4974; amended Pub. L. 109–181, § 2(c)(3),Mar. 16, 2006, 120 Stat. 288.)

References in Text

Section 2320 of title 18, referred to in subsec. (b), was amended generally by Pub. L. 112–81, div. A, title VIII, § 818(h),Dec. 31, 2011, 125 Stat. 1497, and, as so amended, provisions similar to those formerly appearing in subsec. (e) are now contained in subsec. (f).

The date of the enactment of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, referred to in subsec. (c), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 103–465, which was approved Dec. 8, 1994.

Amendments

2006—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 109–181added subsec. (b) and struck out heading and text of former subsec. (b). Text read as follows: “As used in this section, the term ‘traffic in’ means transport, transfer, or otherwise dispose of, to another, as consideration for anything of value, or make or obtain control of with intent to transport, transfer, or dispose of.”