Title 18 — Crimes and Criminal ProcedureRelease 119-73

§2319C Illicit digital transmission services

Title 18 › Part PART I— - CRIMES › Chapter CHAPTER 113— - STOLEN PROPERTY › § 2319C

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

It is illegal for a person to willfully offer or run a digital streaming service for commercial advantage or private financial gain if the service mainly exists to publicly play copyrighted works without permission, has no real lawful use other than doing that, or is marketed to be used that way. Key words: "digital transmission service" means a service whose main purpose is to publicly perform works by digital transmission; "publicly perform/public performance" means the copyright owner’s right to perform works in public; "work being prepared for commercial public performance" means software, music, movies, or recordings the owner expected to show commercially and that have not been commercially released in copy form in the U.S., or a movie shown in theaters but not released for home sale or not shown more than 24 hours earlier. Someone who breaks this can be fined and face up to 3 years in prison. The penalty rises to up to 5 years if the offense involves a work being prepared for commercial public performance and the person knew or should have known, and up to 10 years for a repeat offense. This does not change other civil copyright rules (including the limits in section 512 of title 17) or stop federal or state enforcement of cable-theft or theft-of-service laws.

Full Legal Text

Title 18, §2319C

Crimes and Criminal Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)In this section—

(1)the terms “audiovisual work”, “computer program”, “copies”, “copyright owner”, “digital transmission”, “financial gain”, “motion picture”, “motion picture exhibition facility”, “perform”, “phonorecords”, “publicly” (with respect to performing a work), “sound recording”, and “transmit” have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of title 17;

(2)the term “digital transmission service” means a service that has the primary purpose of publicly performing works by digital transmission;

(3)the terms “publicly perform” and “public performance” refer to the exclusive rights of a copyright owner under paragraphs (4) and (6) of section 106 (relating to exclusive rights in copyrighted works) of title 17, as limited by sections 107 through 122 of title 17; and

(4)the term “work being prepared for commercial public performance” means—

(A)a computer program, a musical work, a motion picture or other audiovisual work, or a sound recording, if, at the time of unauthorized public performance—

(i)the copyright owner has a reasonable expectation of commercial public performance; and

(ii)the copies or phonorecords of the work have not been commercially publicly performed in the United States by or with the authorization of the copyright owner; or

(B)a motion picture, if, at the time of unauthorized public performance, the motion picture—

(i)(I)has been made available for viewing in a motion picture exhibition facility; and

(II)has not been made available in copies for sale to the general public in the United States by or with the authorization of the copyright owner in a format intended to permit viewing outside a motion picture exhibition facility; or

(ii)had not been commercially publicly performed in the United States by or with the authorization of the copyright owner more than 24 hours before the unauthorized public performance.

(b)It shall be unlawful for a person to willfully, and for purposes of commercial advantage or private financial gain, offer or provide to the public a digital transmission service that—

(1)is primarily designed or provided for the purpose of publicly performing works protected under title 17 by means of a digital transmission without the authority of the copyright owner or the law;

(2)has no commercially significant purpose or use other than to publicly perform works protected under title 17 by means of a digital transmission without the authority of the copyright owner or the law; or

(3)is intentionally marketed by or at the direction of that person to promote its use in publicly performing works protected under title 17 by means of a digital transmission without the authority of the copyright owner or the law.

(c)Any person who violates subsection (b) shall be, in addition to any penalties provided for under title 17 or any other law—

(1)fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 3 years, or both;

(2)fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both, if—

(A)the offense was committed in connection with 1 or more works being prepared for commercial public performance; and

(B)the person knew or should have known that the work was being prepared for commercial public performance; and

(3)fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both, if the offense is a second or subsequent offense under this section or section 2319(a).

(d)Nothing in this section shall be construed to—

(1)affect the interpretation of any other provision of civil copyright law, including the limitations of liability set forth in section 512 of title 17, or principles of secondary liability; or

(2)prevent any Federal or State authority from enforcing cable theft or theft of service laws that are not subject to preemption under section 301 of title 17.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

18 U.S.C. § 2319C

Title 18 — Crimes and Criminal Procedure

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73