Sponsors (2)
The bill makes photograph registration far more affordable, faster, and flexible for individual creators and small businesses through bulk, electronic, and third‑party options, but it increases privacy/security, fiscal, and governance risks (data exposure, long‑term storage costs, enforcement/fragmentation, and possible taxpayer subsidies).
Photographers, individual creators, and small businesses can register many photographs more cheaply and efficiently — single electronic filings, group/bulk registration, reduced per-application fees, capped deferred‑registration fees, and optional subscription plans lower time and out‑of‑pocket costs.
Tech-savvy and professional creators gain simpler, faster workflows — certified third‑party registries, software-to-Register interoperability, and automated deposit options let creators deposit from their tools or through trusted registries instead of only the Copyright Office.
Small creators, artists, and rights holders can obtain an earlier effective registration date and enforcement advantages — deposits can secure an effective date while full examination is deferred, and CBP may act against infringing imports while registration is pending.
Creators and registrants face increased privacy and security risks — public searchable metadata and software/registry interoperability could expose contact information or deposit materials, raising harassment, doxxing, or unauthorized access risks.
Shifting deposit and registration activity to certified third‑party registries risks fragmentation and variable standards — inconsistent certification enforcement, decentralization, and new processes could weaken uniformity and increase administrative/regulatory burdens on the Copyright Office.
Registry operators may face substantial long‑term storage and retention costs — mandatory storage of photographs and metadata for full copyright terms could raise operating costs, which may be passed to users or deter smaller registries from participating.
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Creates electronic-first and deferred registration for visual works, certifies third-party photo registries, allows bulk/group registrations and subscriptions, and requires an interoperable public interface and reduced fees.
Introduced December 17, 2025 by Marsha Blackburn · Last progress December 17, 2025
Creates an electronic-first copyright system for visual works (pictorial, graphic, and sculptural) by removing paper "best edition" deposit requirements, allowing single-file electronic deposits, authorizing certified third‑party photo registries to accept deposits that satisfy registration law, and adding a deferred registration option that makes the submission date the effective registration date for enforcement. It also allows bulk/group registrations for many photographs under one application and fee, requires the Copyright Office to provide interoperable public-facing interfaces, and mandates reduced fees and subscription-based registration options for creators and small entities. The bill directs the Register of Copyrights to issue implementing regulations (including certification rules and subscription rules) within 180 days, sets a cap and growth requirement for group registrations, adds new fee categories (including a capped deferred-registration fee at up to half the normal fee), and creates technical and operational requirements for third‑party registries and the Copyright Office to enable automatic transmission and searchable public access to deposited works and metadata.