Anti-Piracy, EU Compliance Issues At Congressional Hearing

The number of years databases should be protected before third parties can use or copy them without permission became an issue last week at the first Congressional hearing on a database anti-piracy bill.

That protection against the commercial use of compiled data by a third party without permission would last 15 years under the Misappropriation of Collections of Information Act (H.R.-354), sponsored by Rep. Howard Coble (R-NC).

Nine of the 10 witnesses appearing at that hearing before the House subcommittee on courts and intellectual property chaired by Coble, saw the time limit creating a problem for database companies which they noted are constantly updating their files. The dissenting opinion suggested that the time limit would bring the United States closer to compliance with the European Union’s privacy rules.

Michael Kirk, the American Intellectual Property Law Association’s executive director, pointed out the difficulty in trying to determine when the 15 year protection period would start because databases, particularly electronic databases are “constantly updated with new information which would qualify for protection.”

Marilyn Winokur, testifying on behalf of the Coalition Against Database Piracy, added that the time limit “does not guarantee 15 years of protection.” She said it only exists if the third parties actions harm the database owner market, adding that some databases lose their value in less than 15 years.

Marybeth Peters, Register of Copyrights, Library of Congress Copyright Office, defended the time limit saying it matched that of the EU’s rules prohibiting the sale or rental of personal data without a person’s permission, which went into effect last year. She predicted passage of the bill would lead to an agreement with the EU extending the same protections to U.S. database producers.

The Direct Marketing Association, which is reviewing the measure before taking a position, is expected to testify at future hearings.