NPPA - IPEC Comment 03-23-10 Final

BEFORE THE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET THROUGH THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ENFORCEMENT COORDINATOR (“IPEC”) WASHINGTON, D.C. ________________________________________________ REQUEST FOR WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS REGARDING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY VIOLATIONS AND ENFORCEMENT _________________________________________ FR Doc. 2010-3539 Filed 2-22-10 COMMENTS OF THE NATIONAL PRESS PHOTOGRAPHERS ASSOCIATION MICKEY H. OSTERREICHER, GENERAL COUNSEL NATIONAL PRESS PHOTOGRAPHERS ASSOCIATION 3200 Croasdaile Drive Suite 306 Durham, NC 27705-2586 (919) 383-7246 March 22, 2010 Summary As both staff photographers and independent photojournalists, members of the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) create original intellectual property for print, online and broadcast media on a daily basis. Infringements of the copyrights to this material have contributed to a devastating economic loss for NPPA members, as newspapers and television stations (both local and network) reduce staffs. This has prompted many photojournalists to migrate from staff positions to work as independent contractors. In turn, copyright infringement takes a more direct economic toll on these small business owners, whose livelihoods depend on licensing their creative work. Besides completing assignments, marketing their original work, navigating an increasingly complex map of privacy and publicity laws ...