Last Updated: October 2014
HTC respects the intellectual property of others, and we ask our users to do the same. Each user is responsible for ensuring that the materials the user uploads to the Site do not infringe any third-party copyright.
HTC will promptly remove materials from the Site in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (the “DMCA”), and applicable law, if properly notified that the materials infringe a third-party’s copyright. In addition, HTC may, in appropriate circumstances, terminate the accounts of repeat copyright infringers. If you believe any account holder or subscriber is a repeat copyright infringer, please contact HTC’s Copyright Agent and provide information sufficient for us to verify that the account holder or subscriber is a repeat copyright infringer.
Filing a Notice to Remove Copyrighted Content
If you believe that your work has been copied in some way that constitutes copyright infringement, please provide the written notice specified below to HTC’s Copyright Agent. Please note that HTC provides the following procedure only for you to notify HTC that your copyrighted material on the Site may have been infringed. Any other enquiries, such as requests for technical assistance, will not receive a response through this process.
If you chose to request removal of content by submitting a copyright infringement notification, please remember that you are initiating a legal process, which may result in the suspension of your account or other adverse legal consequences. Under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f) and other applicable law, you may be liable for any damages, including costs and legal fees incurred by us or our users, if you knowingly materially misrepresent that a product or activity is infringing your copyrights, as was the case in Lenz v. Universal Music Corp., 572 F. Supp. 2d 1150 (N.D. Cal. 2008).
If, after careful consideration, you wish to initiate the infringement notification process, please submit the following information to HTC’s Copyright Agent:
- a physical or electronic signature of a person authorised to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright interest;
- a detailed description of the location where the material you claim to be infringed is posted on the Site so that HTC can locate the material;
- your postal address, telephone and email address so that HTC can contact you, if necessary, regarding your notice;
- a statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorised by the copyright owner, its agent or the law; and
- a statement by you, made under PENALTY OF PERJURY, that the information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorised to act on behalf of the copyright owner.
You should submit this information via:
Please note that the fastest and easiest way to submit a notice of alleged copyright infringement is via the Copyright Infringement Notice Form.
Filing a Counter-Notification to Restore Removed Content
If you believe that your material has been removed by mistake or misidentification, please provide the written notice specified below to HTC’s Copyright Agent. Please note that HTC provides the following procedure only for you to notify HTC that your material has been removed by mistake or misidentification. Any other enquiries, such as requests for technical assistance, will not receive a response through this process.
Please understand that submitting a counter-notification may lead to legal proceedings between you and the complaining party. Further, you should be aware that there may be adverse legal consequences in your country if you make a false or bad faith allegation by using the counter-notification process. Accordingly, if you are uncertain whether certain material infringes the copyrights of others, we suggest that you first seek legal advice.
Please note that HTC will send any complete copyright infringement counter-notifications we receive to the person who submitted the original copyright infringement notice. By submitting a copyright infringement counter-notification, you consent to having your personal information revealed in this way.
If, after careful consideration, you wish to submit a counter-notification, please submit the following information to HTC’s Copyright Agent:
- your electronic or physical signature;
- a detailed description of the location of where the removed material was posted on the Site;
- a statement UNDER PENALTY OF PERJURY that you have a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification; and
- a statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the Federal District Court for the judicial district in which your address is located, or if your address is outside of the United States, any judicial district in which HTC may be found (which includes the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington), and that you will accept service of process from the person who filed the original copyright infringement notice or an agent of that person.
You should submit this information via:
Please note that the fastest and easiest way to submit a counter-notification of alleged copyright infringement is via the Copyright Infringement Counter-Notification Form.
Warnings & Notifications
In filing a notice or counter-notification of copyright infringement, please make sure that you have complied with all of the above requirements. If we request additional information necessary to make your copyright infringement notice or counter-notification complete, please provide that information promptly. If you fail to comply with all of these requirements, your copyright infringement notice or counter-notification may not be processed further. In addition, please verify that all of the information that you provide is accurate.
THE SUBMISSION OF A COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT NOTICE OR COUNTER-NOTIFICATION MAY RESULT IN ADVERSE LEGAL CONSEQUENCES UNDER APPLICABLE, INCLUDING SECTION 512(f) OF THE COPYRIGHT ACT, 17 U.S.C. § 512(f), PURSUANT TO WHICH ANY PERSON WHO KNOWINGLY MATERIALLY MISREPRESENTS THAT MATERIAL OR ACTIVITY IS INFRINGING OR WAS REMOVED OR DISABLED BY MISTAKE OR MISIDENTIFICATION MAY BE SUBJECT TO LIABILITY.
HTC may disclose any communications concerning copyright notices or other intellectual property complaints with third parties. Please note, that in an effort to be as transparent as possible regarding the removal or restriction of access to user-posted content, we may send a copy of each copyright infringement notice and counter-notification that we process to third parties, including the non-profit organisation Chilling Effects, where they are posted to a public-facing website after removing certain personal information.
If a counter-notification is received by HTC’s agent, HTC may send a copy of the counter-notification to the original complaining party informing that person that we may restore the removed materials or cease disabling it not less than 10 business days after receipt of the counter-notification. Unless the copyright owner files an action seeking a court order against the content provider, member or user, the removed content may be replaced, or access to it restored, not less than 10 business days after receipt of the counter-notification, at HTC’s sole discretion.
HTC cannot offer any legal advice. If you have questions about the legal requirements of a copyright infringement notice or counter-notification, you should seek legal advice.
HTC’s Copyright Agent
In addition to the webforms we provide, you may send a copyright infringement notice or counter-notification, or any enquiries concerning intellectual property to HTC’s Copyright Agent at:
Copyright Agent; Legal Department
HTC America, Inc.
308 Occidental Ave South, Suite 300
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: (425) 679-5318
Fax: (425) 861-1715
Email: copyright_americas@htc.com
Procedures for Processing Take-Down and Put-Back Requests
- HTC to disable flagged content as soon as possible after receipt of copyright infringement notice
- Promptly notify user that material has been disabled. Example:
“You are receiving this message to inform you that the following content has been disabled pursuant to a notice of copyright infringement received by HTC:
If you believe the material has been disabled by mistake or misidentification you may submit a copyright infringement counter-notification by following the procedures described here
- Preserve disabled content for no less than [30] days after take-down.
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If the user submits a copyright infringement counter-notification:
- promptly provide the person who submitted the copyright infringement notice with the counter-notification; and
- restore the disabled content not less than 10 nor more than 14 business days following receipt of the counter-notification.
