Technology

RIAA Copyright Infringement

Important Message Regarding the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) "Settlement Letters" and "Preservation Notices"

Copiah-Lincoln Community College acts as an ISP (Internet Service Provider) for dorm students and provides general lab usage for students and members of the public and supports systems for administrative use where access to the Internet is provided by the College.As a student, staff or faculty Co-lin account holder or system user, you are subject to all applicable policies, including those relating to copyright infringement.

The Recording Industry Association of America (“RIAA”) is a trade group that represents major U.S. recording industry companies. The RIAA identifies IP addresses that allegedly have been used in violation of RIAA members’ copyrights (“Alleged Infringer”).

Seeking to enforce the copyrights of its member record companies, the RIAA contacts the ISP that provides service for those IP addresses and notifies the ISP of any alleged violations of the Copyright Act. The RIAA has also recently employed more aggressive means of policing music piracy. The RIAA sends "preservation notices" to ISPs requesting that the ISP preserve contact information about the Alleged Infringer. The RIAA then requests that the ISP forward "settlement letters" to the person associated with the IP address if it is practicable to make that association given that static IP addresses are not assigned to students or individual machines on campus.

Upon receipt of a copyright violation notice, The Technology Department will attempt to contact Alleged Infringers and notify them of the allegation. As a matter of internal College policy, each student or other Alleged Infringer must cease all illegal file sharing activity and delete any copyrighted material from their computer. In addition, the student or Alleged Infringer is required to sign a document stating his/her understanding and acknowledgement of the process.

Copiah-Lincoln Community College responds to Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) notices of infringement as required by federal law.

DMCA Notice "Settlement Letters"

If the College receives an RIAA notice with a "settlement letter" attached, it will treat the letter as a DMCA notice provided it satisfies the requirements of the law. Consistent with current practice, the College will forward the "settlement letter" together with the standard DMCA notice letter to the account holder.

DMCA "Preservation Notices"

If the college receives a "preservation letter," which requests the holding of basic contact information for the account holder but does not meet all the elements of a DMCA notice, the College will preserve the requested information and simply forward the letter to the account holder for his or her information. The account holder would then know that the RIAA has identified him or her as an Alleged Infringer and would have the option of agreeing to settle the matter with the RIAA within the prescribed time period. Again, unless served with a proper subpoena, Copiah-Lincoln Community College would generally not release the contact information based on the preservation notice alone.

Copiah-Lincoln Technology Department does not routinely monitor its network for content and does not generate DMCA notices. Copiah-Lincoln is not a party to these matters. If an account holder receives one of these "settlement letters" or "preservation notices", he or she has the sole responsibility to decide how (if at all) to respond to the RIAA and whether to consult with legal counsel before making a decision.

In addition to the RIAA, many content owners send DMCA notices to ISPs for videos, movies, games and software that have allegedly been infringed. Content owners and their representatives such as the RIAA have become increasingly vigilant and technologically sophisticated in monitoring file sharing on the Internet.

Students are reminded that copyright infringement is illegal and violates Copiah-Lincoln policy. In addition, penalties for copyright infringement include civil and criminal penalties. In general, anyone found liable for civil copyright infringement may be ordered to pay either actual damages or “statutory” damages affixed at not less than $750 and not more than $30,000 per work infringed. For “willful” infringement, a court may award up to $150,000 per work infringed. A court can, in its discretion, also assess costs and attorneys’ fees. For details, see Title 17, United States Code, Sections 504, 505.

Willful copyright infringement can also result in criminal penalties, including imprisonment of up to five years and fines of up to $250,000 per offense.

If you have specific questions about this message, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

J.P. McInnis
Director of Technology and DMCA Registered Agent
Copiah-Lincoln Community College

HEA Compliance Plan

Pursuant to certain amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA), Copiah-Lincoln Community College must adopt and implement a plan to combat illegal file sharing. The following are the three primary requirements of the file sharing provisions of the HEA and the College's plans for ensuring compliance with them.

Certify the development of a plan to effectively combat the unauthorized distribution of copyright material

· Use one or more technology-based deterrent:

To satisfy the requirement of using technology-based deterrent to reduce illegal file sharing, Co-lin has chosen to use a third-party product to replace the existing Packeteer. The proposed product is a technology that is used to monitor traffic which crosses the WAN and to eliminate or severely throttle and help identify any alleged violator of Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) provisions. To the extent practicable, the College may choose to implement additional capabilities which could include NAC based technologies to enforce a connection policy once switching infrastructure has been upgraded to accommodate this methodology.

· Mechanisms for educating and informing the community about appropriate versus inappropriate use:

Co-Lin’s plan to educate and inform the community about illegal file sharing has several components.

- Publishing the Student Handbook, which outlines the criminal and civil penalties for violation of copyright law.
- Maintaining a website for the College plan to combat illegal file sharing that includes: a posting of this plan document; an outline of the disciplinary sanctions and criminal and civil penalties for violation of copyright law; educational material describing legal and illegal examples of file sharing; and links to legal sources of music, videos, books and other copyrighted material.
- Distributing occasional articles on copyright issues via email and web to the College community.
- Annually providing all students with information about the College's copyright policy via an email communication.
- Requiring students to acknowledge acceptance of the College's Acceptable Use Policy at initial network login.
- Presenting information on the College's copyright policy during the Orientation Process/Class for all freshmen, as well as to Counselors.

· Procedures for handling unauthorized distribution of copyrighted material:

Copiah-Lincoln Community College’s plan to combat illegal file sharing is designed to provide maximum flexibility in dealing with different situations. The College will also utilize a wide range of disciplinary measures to discipline users found in violation of the policies regarding copyrighted material and use of the internet. Violating users will be subject to the full range of criminal and civil penalties. Students found in violation of College policies will be subject to a full range of disciplinary action, up to and including expulsion. Repeat offenders will be referred to the Dean of Students' Office for action. Faculty and staff found in violation of College policies prohibiting unlawful file sharing may be subject to disciplinary action ranging in severity from a warning up to and including termination of employment.

The College will also combat the unauthorized distribution of copyright material by continuing to respond to DMCA copyright infringement notices using the procedure detailed at: http://www.colin.edu/component/content/article/90

In order to retain necessary flexibility in the administration of policies, the College reserves the right to interpret, revise, or delete any of the provisions of this plan or any of its policies, as the College deems appropriate in its discretion.

· Procedure for periodic review of plan's effectiveness:

On an annual basis, Copiah-Lincoln Community College will review the effectiveness of its plan in achieving a reduction in illegal file sharing. The review will be performed jointly by the Technology Office. The College will use both process-based and outcome-based criteria in conducting this review. Such process-based criteria may include whether Copiah-Lincoln Community College is following current best practices developed either by similar institutions or copyright holders. Two measures of outcome-based effectiveness will be the number of DMCA notices and the recidivism rate of violators. The College will also continue to examine potential new cost-effective technological deterrents, in addition to possible revisions to the educational portion of the plan.

Make an annual disclosure that informs students that the illegal distribution of copyrighted materials may subject students to criminal and civil penalties and that describes the steps the College will take to detect and punish illegal distribution of copyrighted materials.

The College will circulate an annual disclosure notice to current students that apprises them of the criminal and civil penalties, as well as the College disciplinary sanctions, for violations of copyright laws. The College also places its policy prohibiting illegal file sharing in the Student Handbook in the policy section of the College website.

To the extent practicable, offer alternatives to illegal file sharing:

On the section of Copiah-Lincoln Community College's website dedicated to illegal file sharing, the College will provide links for legal sources of music, movies and other material, which will be supplemented from time to time in the event the College becomes aware of additional sources for lawfully obtaining copyrighted material. Co-Lin will endeavor to continue to locate and provide to the community additional sources for obtaining copyrighted material in a legal fashion. The College will make available the results of this periodic review of legal alternatives on the same website.

Copyright Policy

The unauthorized copying, sharing or distribution of copyrighted material is strictly prohibited. It is a violation of federal law, the Copyright Act, and of this Student Code of Conduct. Students who infringe a copyright are subject to (i) disciplinary action under the Student Code of Conduct up to and including expulsion and/or (ii) civil or criminal penalties.

In general, anyone found liable for civil copyright infringement may be ordered to pay either actual damages or “statutory” damages affixed at not less than $750 and not more than $30,000 per work infringed. For “willful” infringement, a court may award up to $150,000 per work infringed. A court can, in its discretion, also assess costs and attorneys’ fees. For details, see Title 17, United States Code, Sections 504, 505. Willful copyright infringement can also result in criminal penalties, including imprisonment of up to five years and fines of up to $250,000 per offense.

To the extent practicable, Copiah-Lincoln Community College will enforce the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), Pub.L.No. 105-304, by responding to DMCA notices if and when they are received. All DMCA notices must be in writing (either on paper or electronic mail) and must include the following elements:

· A physical or electronic signature

· Description of the work claimed to be infringed

· Description of the allegedly infringing work and the location on the College’s web site

· Contact information for the complaining party

· A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that the use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner or law

· A statement that the information contained in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner

Copiah-Lincoln Community College will respond to these notices by making reasonable attempts to identify the violator and, if applicable, by forwarding any notices and settlement requests to identifiable violators. In addition, the Copiah-Lincoln Community College may initiate the appropriate disciplinary action for such violations.

Copyright Infringement Reporting

To report copyright infringements on Copiah-Lincoln Community College’s Web site, please notify:

J.P. McInnis
Director of Technology
Tel: 601-643-8488
Fax: 601-643-8222
e-mail address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

J.P. McInnis is the agent designated under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, P.L. 105-304, to respond to reports alleging copyright infringements on Copiah-Lincoln Community College’s Web site.

Copyright Infringement and Illegal File Sharing

Copyright Infringement

The copying, distribution or sharing of copyrighted works (including music, videos, and digital copies of textbook) without permission may be referred to as “copyright infringement”, “pirating” or, in the electronic context through peer-to-peer networks, “illegal file sharing”. Copyright infringement is the act of exercising, without permission or legal authority, one or more of the exclusive rights granted to the copyright owner under section 106 of the Copyright Act (Title 17 of the United States Code). These rights include the right to reproduce or distribute a copyrighted work. In the file-sharing context, downloading or uploading substantial parts of a copyrighted work without the permission of the copyright holder constitutes infringement.

Penalties for Copyright Infringement

The unauthorized copying, sharing or distribution of copyrighted material is strictly prohibited. It is a violation of federal law, the Copyright Act, and of the Student Code of Conduct. Students who infringe a copyright are subject to disciplinary action under the Student Code of Conduct, up to and including expulsion. Employees may be subject to disciplinary action ranging in severity from a warning up to and including termination of employment.

In addition, penalties for copyright infringement include civil and criminal penalties. In general, anyone found liable for civil copyright infringement may be ordered to pay either actual damages or “statutory” damages affixed at not less than $750 and not more than $30,000 per work infringed. For “willful” infringement, a court may award up to $150,000 per work infringed. A court can, in its discretion, also assess costs and attorneys’ fees. For details, see Title 17, United States Code, Sections 504, 505.

Willful copyright infringement can also result in criminal penalties, including imprisonment of up to five years and fines of up to $250,000 per offense.

Copiah-Lincoln Community College will provide this information to all students in its annual HEA notice, as well as to all students and employees in periodic email reminders.

Copiah-Lincoln Community College Plan to Combat Copyright Infringement

Pursuant to certain amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA), Copiah-Lincoln Community College has adopted a plan to combat copyright infringement. The Compliance Plan details the technology-based deterrent used by Co-Lin to reduce illegal file sharing, the mechanisms for informing the community about inappropriate use, the procedures for handling unauthorized distribution of copyrighted material and the procedures for periodically reviewing the plan’s effectiveness

Copiah-Lincoln Community College Plan to Combat Copyright Infringement

As part of its efforts to combat illegal file sharing, Co-Lin endeavors to educate and inform its community about copyright infringement. To that end, users of the College network must agree to be bound by the Institution’s Acceptable Use Policy. The College also publishes the Student Handbook, which contains the Copyright Policy and penalties for violations. The College Copyright Policy is also maintained on Copiah-Lincoln Community College website.

Topical articles and issues are sent periodically via email to the College community.

Resources and policies regarding copyright issues and legal and illegal examples of file sharing:

www.copyright.gov, especially their FAQ’s at www.copyright.gov/help/faq
Educause File Sharing Resources
www.campusdownloading.com
Acceptable Use Policy
Student Handbook
Copyright Policy

Legal Alternatives

As part of compliance with the HEA, Copiah-Lincoln Community College endeavors to provide its community with information about numerous legal sources of music, videos, books and other copyrighted material. For a comprehensive list of legal sources of music, videos, books and other copyrighted material, see the Educause website at www.educause.edu/legalcontent.

Additional legal downloading sources are:

Copyright Infringement Reporting

To report copyright infringements on Copiah-Lincoln Community College’s Web site, please notify:

J.P. McInnis
Director of Technology
Tel: 601-643-8488
Fax: 601-643-8222
e-mail address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

J.P. McInnis is the agent designated under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, P.L. 105-304, to respond to reports alleging copyright infringements on Copiah-Lincoln Community College’s Web site.

Copiah Lincoln Community College
Student Guide to Information Technology Resources

Overview of Services offered:

All students at Co-lin are charged a technology fee as part of the registration process. This fee is $7.50 per semester hour and not to exceed $75 per semester. The revenue generated via this fee has allowed the college to continue to upgrade technology and to expand the services offered to students. Did you know that as a Co-lin student you have access to the following?

Socialize:

Technology

Technology

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