Copyright Violation On Videos I Produced ...Seeking Advice

[hastyhost]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
Tennessee

Hi everyone,

I produced a series of 18 videos teaching others how to build a solar panel and solar power system from scratch, and I placed the videos on YouTube. I soon after registered all the videos to the copyright office at copyright.gov, and recently received my certificate in the mail.

Anyway,

Someone on YouTube contacted me and stated that another site/company was selling a solar guide bundle deal for $69.95, and when you pay this company to get access to the content, the YouTuber stated that they had included 11 of my solar videos in the bundle deal, and users could click on a download link and download the videos to their computer.

I asked the YouTuber for a link to this content, and he/she provided the link, and I found everything exactly like the YouTubers stated. I used a video capture program to document this in case they try to pull it off and for my records.

My question here is, what exactly should I do here, or can I do anything about it? I personally would like to sue the company/owner if possible as it's no telling how long they have been doing this, and they are obviously making money from my hard work.

Just seeking guidance here and what options I have, thanks for reading.

 

[quincy]

You are entitled to sue for copyright infringement in federal court.

The court can issue a restraining order or injunction to prevent further infringement, and the court can award damages, and the court can, under some circumstances, award attorney fees.

The damages that can be awarded are for actual losses you suffered as a result of the infringement and any profits realized by the infringer, or you can be awarded statutory damages if you registered your work prior to the infringement or within three months after the publication of your videos.

Statutory damages are set by law. These can range from $750 to $30,000 per infringement or, in the case of intentional infringement, the infringer may have to pay up to $150,000 for a single infringement. It will depend on the facts.

I suggest you contact an IP attorney for a review of the facts and discuss with the attorney all of the options available to you - getting a restraining order and injunction, sending a cease and desist letter to the infringer with, perhaps, a demand for $$$ to settle the matter out of court, pursuing a civil infringement action against the infringer - and then go from there.

The statute of limitations for a civil copyright action is three years after first discovery of the infringement.

Good luck.