Strengthening copyright law hurts start-ups by giving big tech companies leverage to unjustly sue

Abby, 1-19-22, Medium, “Copyright Law & Startup Innovation: Policies That Matter and Where They May be Headed,” https://engineadvocacyfoundation.medium.com/copyright-law-startup-innovation-policies-that-matter-and-where-they-may-be-headed-dea034904e25, accessed 7-9-24, CT]

This week we are reflecting on copyright policy — where it has been, where it might go, and what that means for high-tech, high-growth startups and the Internet users, entrepreneurs, and creators that depend on them. Copyright law, which is supposed to encourage creation and innovation, can also be used as a weapon against progress. And what better time to take stock of that? This week marks Copyright Week, sponsored by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the 10 year anniversary of a high-profile protest that stopped two deeply-flawed copyright bills that would have fundamentally changed the way the Internet works. The direction copyright policy takes can have an outsized influence on what startups can (and cannot) do, and policymakers eager to support innovation should keep that in mind.

Startups need balanced, certain copyright frameworks. Well-tailored laws that focus on enforcement of legitimate rights can support innovation. But it is too easy for those frameworks to get out of whack and become imbalanced, which we’ve seen time and again. For example, right now the law allows bogus infringement allegations to dictate that non-infringing content is (routinely) removed from the Internet. Uncertainty over what copyright law permits, coupled with high litigation costs, slows startups down and has even forced some out of business. And the risk of a startup being sued for something a user does — and something the startup knows nothing about — alone can scare away investors.