Washington - A bill approved by the Senate last week that would have protected the new uses of "orphaned" copyright works will not be taken up in the House until at least after the elections, Wired.com reported, citing lobbyists.

The bipartisan Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act of 2008 would permit use of copyrighted works whose owners are difficult to locate, so long as the potential new user made a "diligent" effort to locate them; submits a "Notice of Use" with the Copyright Office; and provide attribution.

The bill would also limit normal infringement damages of $150,000 to a reasonable license fee.

Related Links:
http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/09/orphan-works-co.html

http://snipurl.com/403o1 (DMW previous coverage)