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Purpose and Scope
Silvey & Co., a Texas limited liability company doing business as BusinessGuard (the "Company," "we," "us," or "our"), respects the intellectual property rights of others and expects all Users of the BusinessGuard platform (the "Service") to do the same. This Copyright and Digital Millennium Copyright Act Policy (this "DMCA Policy") sets forth the procedures by which copyright owners may report alleged infringement of their copyrighted works on or through the Service, and the procedures by which affected Users may submit counter-notifications in response to such reports. The Company has adopted this DMCA Policy in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, 17 U.S.C. § 512[1] (the "DMCA"), and, in particular, the safe harbor provisions set forth in 17 U.S.C. § 512(c). The Company seeks to qualify for and maintain the protections afforded to online service providers under the DMCA by, among other things, designating a DMCA Agent, expeditiously removing or disabling access to allegedly infringing material upon receipt of a compliant takedown notice, and implementing a policy providing for the termination of the Accounts of repeat infringers in appropriate circumstances. This DMCA Policy applies exclusively to claims of copyright infringement and does not address other intellectual property claims, including, without limitation, trademark, patent, or trade secret claims.
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Designated DMCA Agent
In accordance with 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(2), the Company has designated the following agent to receive notifications of claimed copyright infringement (the "Designated Agent"): Silvey & Co. Legal Department. Email: dmca@thebusinessguard.com. The Company will complete and maintain a Designated Agent registration with the United States Copyright Office pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(2) prior to the general availability launch of the Service. Until such registration is effective, please direct DMCA notifications to dmca@thebusinessguard.com; upon registration, the directory filing shall be the authoritative channel. All DMCA takedown notices and counter-notifications must be submitted to the Designated Agent at the email or mailing address set forth above. Notices delivered to any other address, department, or individual within the Company may not receive a timely response and shall not be deemed to constitute proper notice under this DMCA Policy or the DMCA.
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Filing a DMCA Takedown Notice
If you are a copyright owner, or an agent authorized to act on behalf of a copyright owner, and you believe in good faith that material hosted on or through the Service infringes your copyright, you may submit a written takedown notification to the Designated Agent in accordance with the requirements of 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3).
3.1 Required Elements of a Takedown Notice
To be effective, the notification must be a written communication that includes substantially all of the following: (a) a physical or electronic signature of the copyright owner or a person authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner; (b) identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works; (c) identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit the Company to locate the material, including, without limitation, the specific URL or other precise description of where the allegedly infringing material appears on the Service; (d) information reasonably sufficient to permit the Company to contact the complaining party, including, without limitation, an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail address at which the complaining party may be contacted; (e) a statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and (f) a statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and, under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
3.2 Company Response to a Compliant Notice
Upon receipt of a takedown notification that substantially complies with the requirements of 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3), the Company shall act expeditiously to remove or disable access to the allegedly infringing material and shall make reasonable efforts to notify the User who posted or submitted such material (the "Affected User") that it has done so.
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Counter-Notification Process
If you are a User of the Service and you believe in good faith that material removed or disabled as a result of a DMCA takedown notification was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification, you may submit a written counter-notification to the Designated Agent in accordance with the requirements of 17 U.S.C. § 512(g)(3).
4.1 Required Elements of a Counter-Notification
To be effective, the counter-notification must be a written communication that includes substantially all of the following: (a) a physical or electronic signature of the Affected User; (b) identification of the material that has been removed or to which access has been disabled and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or access was disabled; (c) a statement under penalty of perjury that the Affected User has a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled; and (d) the Affected User's name, address, and telephone number, and a statement that the Affected User consents to the jurisdiction of the Federal District Court for the judicial district in which the Affected User's address is located (or, if the Affected User's address is outside of the United States, for any judicial district in which the Company may be found), and that the Affected User will accept service of process from the person who provided the original takedown notification or an agent of such person.
4.2 Restoration Timeline and Court-Action Exception
Upon receipt of a counter-notification that substantially complies with the requirements of 17 U.S.C. § 512(g)(3), the Company shall promptly provide the original complaining party with a copy of the counter-notification and inform such party that the Company will restore the removed material or cease disabling access to it within ten (10) to fourteen (14) business days. If the original complaining party does not file a court action seeking a restraining order against the Affected User within ten (10) business days of receiving the counter-notification, the Company shall restore the removed material or cease disabling access to it within ten (10) to fourteen (14) business days following receipt of the counter-notification.
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Repeat Infringer Policy
In accordance with 17 U.S.C. § 512(i)(1)(A), the Company has adopted and reasonably implemented a policy that provides for the termination of the Accounts of Users who are repeat infringers in appropriate circumstances. A "repeat infringer" is a User who has been the subject of more than one valid DMCA takedown notification for which the User did not successfully submit a counter-notification, or a User who has had material removed from the Service on more than one occasion due to copyright infringement. The Company reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate the Account of any User who is determined to be a repeat infringer, with or without prior notice. The Company further reserves the right to terminate the Account of any User who, in the Company's sole judgment, infringes or is alleged to have infringed any intellectual property right of any third party, regardless of whether such User qualifies as a repeat infringer under this Section. Termination of a User's Account under this Section shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, any other rights or remedies available to the Company or the copyright owner under applicable law.
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Misrepresentation Warning
Any person who knowingly materially misrepresents under the DMCA that material or activity on the Service is infringing, or that material or activity was removed or disabled by mistake or misidentification, shall be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, costs and attorneys' fees, incurred by the Company, the alleged infringer, or any copyright owner who is injured by such misrepresentation, as provided in 17 U.S.C. § 512(f). Before filing a DMCA takedown notification or counter-notification, you are strongly encouraged to consult with an attorney to understand your rights and obligations under the DMCA. The Company reserves the right to seek damages from any party that submits a takedown notification or counter-notification in violation of the DMCA, including, without limitation, damages for misrepresentation under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f). Filing a false DMCA takedown notification or counter-notification constitutes perjury and may subject the filing party to civil and criminal liability.
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Limitations
This DMCA Policy addresses only claims of copyright infringement arising under the Copyright Act of the United States, 17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq. This DMCA Policy does not apply to, and the Company's Designated Agent is not authorized to receive or process notifications concerning, claims of trademark infringement, patent infringement, trade secret misappropriation, defamation, false advertising, right of publicity violations, or any other legal claim that does not constitute copyright infringement under federal law. Claims that do not involve copyright infringement shall be directed to the Company's general legal department at legal@thebusinessguard.com and shall be addressed in accordance with the Company's Terms of Service and applicable law. The Company expressly reserves all rights and remedies available to it under applicable law and does not waive any right by the adoption or implementation of this DMCA Policy.
Important Notice
This policy is provided for informational purposes and is not legal advice. Copyright owners and affected Users are strongly encouraged to consult with independent legal counsel before submitting a DMCA takedown notice or counter-notification.
Knowingly filing a materially false DMCA notice may subject the filing party to liability for damages under 17 U.S.C. § 512(f), including costs and attorneys' fees.
All DMCA-related communications should be directed exclusively to the Designated Agent at dmca@thebusinessguard.com.