Citation[]
No Electronic Theft Act ("NET Act") of 1997, Pub. L. No. 105-147, 111 Stat. 2678 (Dec. 16, 1997) (full-text), amending 17 U.S.C. §506(a) (full-text).
Overview[]
The Act amended federal copyright and criminal law to broaden the financial gain infringement requirement to include the receipt of anything of value.[1] By enacting what was then 17 U.S.C. §506(a)(2) (renumbered § 506(a)(1)(B) by the Apr. 27, 2005 amendments), Congress created a felony that only requires proof of willful infringement above certain monetary and numerical thresholds.
The Act extended the statute of limitations for criminal copyright infringement from three to five years. at also set penalties for willful infringement under Title 18.
References[]
- ↑ See 143 Cong. Rec. 24,324 (1997) (remarks of Rep. Coble); H.R. Rep. No. 105-339, at 4-5 (1997).