It's important to remember that this is still a bill, not a "new law." It's not a law yet, and won't be if its passage can be stymied.

Please visit http://www.owoh.org for up to date information regarding the two versions of these bills, H.R.5889 (House) and S-2913 (Senate).

We strongly oppose the Orphan Works now before the House and Senate because:_ _1. These bills will basically allow anyone to use a design for any purpose— without the copyright holder’s knowledge or permission – after performing a perfunctory, still-to-be- defined “reasonably diligent search.”
Even if a work is registered with the copyright office, identification of the copyright holder relies heavily on the knowledge of a work's author and title. Therefore in most cases, performance of a "reasonable search" is very likely to be unsuccessful.
2. The bills will allow an infringer to create—and copyright—a derivative work even if the copyright holder of the original design objects.
3. The bills require the implementation of a searchable visual arts database that does not currently exist; yet the bills can potentially take effect whether or not this database is ever completed.
4. The bills not only eliminate reimbursement of court costs and legal fees, but also eliminate statutory damages even in the case of a use which damages the current or future value of the work.
Statutory damages are seldom sought by artists, but are extremely effective at deterring rampant infringement. By limiting remedies the Orphan Works amendments will effectively create a no-fault license to infringe.
5. Under these bills artists will bear a prohibitive financial burden to register their individual works.
Given the large body of work many artists create, the cost of digitizing thousands or tens of thousands of images, at costs ranging from $25 to $100 per image, would make compliance impossible for most, while even nominal fees ($1 for example) would make protection of their work impossible for many more.
6. The Orphan Works bills would nullify the absolute protections afforded rights holders under the 1976 Copyright Act; it would violate the rights and betray the trust of American artists who for the last 30 years complied with the law which ensured them protection upon creation whether or not they ever registered their work with the Copyright Office.
Because the Orphan Works Acts have been drafted so broadly, its effects will not be limited to works that are really orphans. A huge percentage of our nation’s population consider themselves to be non-professional or semi-professional artists or hobbyists. While these people may never make a sale, all expect that copyright protects them. Almost none of these people will file for copyright registration and almost none will submit to the proposed databases. So, the Orphan Works bills would effectively strip millions of voters of their passive copyright protection.
_The consequences of this radical change to Copyright Law have never been subjected to a market impact survey. There is no way to determine the harmful effects this legislation will have on countless small businesses or on average citizens who will have maintain eternal vigilance to ensure no one uses their intellectual property without their permission. These bills were planned behind closed doors, introduced on short notice and fast-tracked for imminent passage without allowing the voices of the Creative Arts industries to be heard. This is a very serious situation for designers, art licensors, illustrators, photographers, musicians, cartoonists and other creators— as well as the manufacturers who license and use our work. We believe that any bill which constitutes such a radical change to the ownership of private property should not be drafted in secret and rushed through Congress without proper discussion of its merits. We respectfully request that Congress slow down this legislation until it can be subjected to an open, informed, and transparent public debate.