How do i contact a website to remove MY copy-written content?

Question

Hi, I am told that often companies will contact a website, such as torrent websites and either ask, or request they remove specific content which is violating copyright law, which belongs to the person requesting the removal, I understand websites like Torrent websites consist of pretty much all pirated goods, but I have still heard that they will often cooperate with these requests..

What my question is, is there some way to do it such as some form I submit to them, or do i just find an administrative email address and write them telling them the url of the material and that I am so and so from X company, and I am requesting this material be removed?

Thanks!

Answer 1

You can do that, find their contact link, usually at the bottom of the page.



However, you have to realize virtually all of the torrent sites up do not operate within the U.S. or operate in countries which there is no enforcement of copyright law. As well as the nature of torrents, they don't actually have any copyrighted data, they just provide trackers, which are more like links to people hosting the data.



So really, your efforts are futile in the long run. You could however end up on something like TPB's legal threats page, along with their humorous responses to people who fail to understand that they were not breaking any laws. http://thepiratebay.org/legal



If the site is actually hosting your data, you could file a DMCA take-down notice on the content. However that means they have to be in a country that is part of the DMCA, which again, isn't likely to happen as virtually none operate in the U.S. and the ones that do quickly get shutdown for the more mainstream piracy.

Answer 2

Not only do they "often cooperate", they are required by federal law to cooperate or else be sued as a contributory infringer. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act gave hosting websites a list of rules to achieve a "safe harbor" for things uploaded by others. One thing they MUST do is have a registered agent to accept copyright complaints from copyright owners. Another thing is that they MUST have a procedure for immediate "takedown" of the offending materials unless there is some exception (e.g., the copyright ownership or license status is in dispute).



A compliant DMCA website must have a link to the Copyright Agent someplace easily found.

Answer 3

Usually at the bottom of the website main page there will be a link that says contact us. If not just look around and see if you can find the admin/webmaster email address.