Determined to regain control of the public discourse on copyright, Pallante delivered what turned out to be a landmark speech, The Next Great Copyright Act, which encouraged Congress to think about copyright anew, rather than making ad hoc changes and adjustments from time to time. The speech worked, and Congress embarked on what became known as the “copyright review,” the most intense period of Congressional focus on copyright issues since the debates that led to the Copyright Act of 1976.

Arguably the biggest challenge for copyright owners today is how to enforce their rights in a world where the ability to copy and distribute worldwide is instantaneous and nearly costless. Specific topics include the felony streaming loophole, the future of the DMCA’s safe harbor provisions (i.e., the notice-and-takedown system), and site blocking, an enforcement procedure that has become commonplace in many foreign jurisdictions but remains an anathema in the United States.

Once an esoteric provision of the copyright code, the prohibition on circumvention of technological measures to control access to copyrighted works (such as digital rights management on DVDs and Blu-ray discs) has become something of a consumer protection flash point. Opponents of the anti-circumvention provisions assert that they prevent consumers from being able to repair their own electronic devices that are controlled by microprocessors that are often protected using technological protection measures. Content owners assert that loosening the rules would make it easier to create and distribute pirated content.

Few areas of copyright law are as byzantine and anachronistic as those dealing with music licensing. Like the television business, new technologies and business models in the music business feel hamstrung by the outdated legal structure, and many industry players have turned to Congress for help. Specific topics include the Copyright Office’s call for a unified license and its controversial guidance to the Justice Department on so-called fractional licensing.

The television business has been jolted by rapidly evolving technology over the past several years, but often those technologies conflict with long-established, carefully crafted copyright regimes based on decades of historic precedent. Where new meets old, the Copyright Office, as the primary steward of U.S. copyright policy, often gets stuck in the middle. This chapter addresses cases such as ABC Television v. Aereo and Fox Television Stations v. FilmOn X, the applicability of the Section 111 license to new distribution models, the FCC’s attempt at “unlocking” cable boxes.

In the middle of 2015, the longtime Librarian of Congress, James H. Billington, announced his retirement at the beginning of 2016. Just three months later he abruptly retired early. Shortly after her appointment, Billington’s replacement, Dr. Carla Hayden, abruptly removed Maria Pallante as the Register of Copyrights, forever altering the politics of copyright.