Ninth Triennial Section 1201 Proceeding, 2024 Cycle


The Copyright Office has initiated the ninth triennial rulemaking proceeding under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), section 1201 of Title 17 of the United States Code U.S.C. § 1201, which provides that the Librarian of Congress, upon the recommendation of the Register of Copyrights, may adopt temporary exemptions to the section 1201 prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. The ultimate goal of the proceeding is to determine whether there are particular classes of works as to which users are, or are likely to be in the next three years, adversely affected in their ability to make noninfringing uses due to the prohibition on circumventing access controls. When such classes are identified, the Librarian promulgates regulations exempting the classes from the prohibition for the succeeding three-year period. Additional background information about section 1201 is available at https://www.copyright.gov/1201/ , which contains helpful resources, such as video tutorials, the Office’s policy study on section 1201, and links to prior rulemaking proceedings.


The Office is again using a streamlined procedure for the renewal of exemptions that were granted during the eighth triennial rulemaking. Renewal petitions and comments were due in summer 2023. As explained in the October 19, 2023, notice of proposed rulemaking, the Office intends to recommend readoption of all but one existing exemptions. If renewed, those current exemptions would remain in force for an additional three-year period (October 2024–October 2027).


The Office has evaluated the petitions for new or expanded exemptions and grouped them into seven classes, which are described in greater detail in the notice. The Office has received three rounds of public comments on those classes. The comment period closed on March 19, 2024.


The Office will hold public hearings April 15–19, 2024, via Zoom, which will be live streamed. The agenda and registration links for the public will be available on this page.