[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1587 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1587

 To amend section 1201 of title 17, United States Code, to require the 
 infringement of a copyright for a violation of such section, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 24, 2015

    Ms. Lofgren (for herself, Mr. Massie, Mr. Polis, and Ms. Eshoo) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for 
a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend section 1201 of title 17, United States Code, to require the 
 infringement of a copyright for a violation of such section, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Unlocking Technology Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. INFRINGEMENT OF A COPYRIGHT REQUIRED FOR ANTICIRCUMVENTION 
              PROHIBITION.

    (a) Amendments.--Section 1201(a) of title 17, United States Code, 
is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)(A)--
                    (A) by amending the first sentence to read as 
                follows: ``No person shall, in order to infringe or 
                facilitate infringement of a copyright in a work 
                protected under this title, circumvent a technological 
                measure that effectively controls access to that 
                work.''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following: ``It shall 
                not be a violation of this section to circumvent a 
                technological measure in connection with a work 
                protected under this title if the purpose of such 
                circumvention is to engage in a use that is not an 
                infringement of copyright under this title.'';
            (2) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting after ``for 
                the purpose of'' the following: ``facilitating the 
                infringement of a copyright by'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``circumvent'' 
                and inserting ``facilitate the infringement of a 
                copyright by circumventing''; and
                    (C) in subparagraph (C), by inserting after ``for 
                use in'' the following: ``facilitating the infringement 
                of a copyright by'';
            (3) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and
            (4) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following new 
        paragraph:
    ``(3) It is not a violation of this section to use, manufacture, 
import, offer to the public, provide, or otherwise traffic in any 
technology, product, service, device, component, or part thereof that 
is primarily designed or produced for the purpose of facilitating 
noninfringing uses of works protected under this title by circumventing 
a technological measure that effectively controls access to that work, 
unless it is the intent of the person that uses, manufactures, imports, 
offers to the public, provides, or traffics in the technology, product, 
service, device, component, or part to infringe copyright or to 
facilitate the infringement of a copyright.''.
    (b) Report Required.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than the end of the 9-month 
        period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
        Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information of the 
        Department of Commerce shall submit to the committees described 
        in paragraph (2) a report on--
                    (A) the impact of section 1201 of title 17, United 
                States Code, on consumer choice, competition, and free 
                flow of information;
                    (B) whether section 1201 of such title should be 
                reformed in part, reformed entirely, or repealed; and
                    (C) barriers and challenges to such reform or 
                repeal, including international trade agreements and 
                treaties.
            (2) Committees.--The committees described in this paragraph 
        are the following:
                    (A) The Committees on the Judiciary and Energy and 
                Commerce of the House of Representatives.
                    (B) The Committees on the Judiciary and Commerce, 
                Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 3. NETWORK SWITCHING NOT INFRINGEMENT.

    Section 117 of title 17, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (e); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(d) Network Switching.--Notwithstanding the provisions of section 
106, it is not an infringement to copy or adapt the software or 
firmware of a user-purchased mobile communications device for the sole 
purpose of enabling the device to connect to a wireless communications 
network if--
            ``(1) the copying or adapting is initiated by, or with the 
        consent of, the owner of that device or the owner's agent;
            ``(2) the owner of that device or the owner's agent is in 
        legal possession of the device; and
            ``(3) the owner of that device has the consent of, or an 
        agreement with, the authorized operator of such wireless 
        communications network to make use of that wireless 
        communications network.''.

SEC. 4. HARMONIZATION OF TRADE AGREEMENTS.

    The President shall take the necessary steps to secure 
modifications to applicable bilateral and multilateral trade agreements 
to which the United States is a party in order to ensure that such 
agreements are consistent with the amendments made by this Act.

SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    (a) Amendments.--The amendments made by this Act shall apply to 
acts carried out after the expiration of the 9-month period beginning 
on the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Report.--Sections 2(b) and 4 shall take effect on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.
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