§1703 Seal of the National Recording Registry

Summary

The Librarian of Congress must give a special seal to show a sound recording is in the National Recording Registry and that a copy is the Registry version. The Librarian will make rules about who may use the seal. The seal can only be put on copies of the Registry version and only after the Librarian approves the user. For copyrighted works that were mass distributed, broadcast, or published, only the copyright owner or an authorized licensee may place or allow the seal on copies of the Registry version that are kept in the Library’s Registry Collection. Anyone allowed to use the seal may add a short statement saying the recording was chosen for the National Recording Registry by the Librarian of Congress, with input from the National Recording Preservation Board, because of its cultural, historical, or aesthetic significance. The seal becomes effective when the Librarian publishes the recording’s name in the Federal Register under section 1702(b). No one may knowingly distribute, show to the public, or use the seal to promote a recording unless that copy is actually in the Registry and the Librarian has approved the seal for that copy. Federal district courts can stop violations. Normally the only remedy is removal of the seal. For a willful pattern of violations, a court may also order an injunction and a civil fine of up to $10,000. These remedies are the only legal actions allowed about the seal under this law.