The 5 Best Uses of the Copyright Claims Board

The Copyright Claims Board (CCB) opened its doors in June 2022. However, as we near the second anniversary, we are starting to get a clear picture of the system’s strengths and weaknesses.

This is important because it is unlike any other tool for resolving copyright disputes. It’s an opt-in tool, one where both sides have to choose to participate (even if passively). It also has strict limits on the amount of damages that can be awarded, and it lacks injunctive powers, meaning it can’t force alleged infringers to stop infringing.

Overall, the CCB has done very well for itself. It’s largely met its goal of providing a faster, easier and less expensive path to resolving copyright disputes. It also hasn’t become the haven for “copyright trolls” that many feared.

But that doesn’t mean it’s good for every type of dispute. Even cases that can be filed at the CCB may not be best served by it.

To that end, here are five scenarios in which the CCB has repeatedly proven useful for both sides of a copyright infringement case.

1: When a Settlement is Likely

As of this writing, the CCB has only issued 23 final determinations, many of which are default determinations. As a replacement for federal court, the CCB has proven to be a mixed bag. However, as a tool for aiding settlement, it has proven very useful.

What the CCB does is provide a rigid structure for the two parties to interact and try to reach some kind of agreement. It helps and encourages the two sides to sit down and talk while providing a neutral arbiter that’s knowledgeable about copyright.

Interestingly, Paramount Pictures did this in a case involving an unlicensed pop-up restaurant. Though this is a rare example of a large corporation using the CCB, the two sides settled in the end.

If a settlement seems possible, the CCB can be a great tool to push things over the line and get the deal done.

2: When You Are Dealing with a Small Business

Large companies, which have plenty of resources to handle a regular copyright infringement lawsuit, have not routinely participated in the CCB.

YouTube, Universal Music Group, EMI, Amazon, The New York Times, Sony Music Entertainment and Turner Broadcasting System are among the major companies that have opted out of CCB proceedings. They simply have no reason to participate.

Small businesses, however, have greater motivation. They can’t easily bankroll a major copyright infringement case, so the CCB’s low cost and low damages are tempting.

This is why Joe Hand Promotions, the company that licenses commercial streams of UFC, WWE and AEW events, has had such success with the CCB. They primarily deal with small bars and restaurants, not large corporations.

They’ve secured both settlements and judgments in their favor, showing why the CCB is a good fit for them.

3: Responding to a False Counternotice

Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), a rightsholder can request that a host remove or disable access to an allegedly infringing work. The person whose work was removed can then file a counter notice, after which the work is restored after a 10-business-day waiting period.

If a counternotice is filed, the filer must file a lawsuit to prevent the work from being restored. However, that can be difficult to do. Lawsuits are expensive, and filing one within the two-week window can be nearly impossible.

However, the CCB provides an alternative. It’s a fast, easy and inexpensive way to file a case and prevent the work from being restored. While it only works if the respondent is a US resident, it can be a huge asset in cases where preventing restoration of the work is paramount.

4: When You Can Prove Actual Damages

Damages are a strange thing at the CCB. Under CCB rules, a filer can not seek more than $15,000 per work or more than $30,000 per case. That is one-tenth what one can seek in a regular federal lawsuit.

However, even with the relatively small damages amount, the CCB has been reluctant to award anywhere close to the maximum. Instead, the board has largely adopted a system where it awards 3X the actual damages.

For example, if a photographer can prove that they normally license a work for $500, the CCB will award $1500 in damages. However, if the photographer can’t prove that they’ve ever licensed the photo, the CCB awards the statutory minimum of $750.

While $750 is still likely more money than was spent on filing the case, claimants fare much better if they can prove actual damages.

5: If You Are Familiar with Copyright and the CCB

Finally, you must have a decent amount of familiarity with both copyright law and how the CCB operates.

The CCB provides excellent resources on both. However, by far, the most common reasons cases get dismissed is that they either aren’t addressing a copyright issue or make some procedural mistake, such as targeting a non-US resident.

While you can get a lawyer to help, it may not work out if they aren’t familiar with the CCB. Many lawyer-filed claims with the CCB are dismissed for similar reasons. The CCB is similar to, but also different from, a federal court in the way it operates.

If you don’t take the time to familiarize yourself with the law and the CCB, you’re not likely to make much progress. At that point, you’ve likely just wasted the time and money you invested.

Bottom Line

The CCB is a powerful tool for addressing certain kinds of copyright infringement. While it’s not a panacea for all smaller cases of copyright infringement, it has definitely found a series of niches where it has proved extremely useful.

While it’s likely that other uses of the CCB will come up over time, these seem to be the areas where people are having the greatest success at this moment.

All in all, the CCB is still trying to find its niche. We’re still very much in the experimental phase of the board.

That said, it has become clear that the CCB is not a tool to ignore. It’s a powerful and effective way to resolve copyright disputes in the right situations. The challenge is ensuring that your needs align with what the CCB does well.

The CCB may not be able to do everything that it was hyped to do, but what it can do, it does very well.