Florida Senate - 2015                              CS for SB 604
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Commerce and Tourism; and Senator Flores
       
       
       
       
       
       577-01820-15                                           2015604c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to consumer protection; creating s.
    3         501.155, F.S.; providing a short title; providing
    4         applicability; providing definitions; requiring owners
    5         and operators of specified websites and online
    6         services to disclose certain information; providing
    7         for injunctive relief; providing an effective date.
    8          
    9  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   10  
   11         Section 1. Section 501.155, Florida Statutes, is created to
   12  read:
   13         501.155 Electronic dissemination of commercial recordings
   14  or audiovisual works; required disclosures; injunctive relief.—
   15         (1) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the “True
   16  Origin of Digital Goods Act.”
   17         (2) APPLICABILITY.—This section is supplemental to those
   18  provisions of state and federal criminal and civil law which
   19  impose prohibitions or provide penalties, sanctions, or remedies
   20  against the same conduct prohibited by this section. This
   21  section does not:
   22         (a) Bar any cause of action or preclude the imposition of
   23  sanctions or penalties that would otherwise be available under
   24  state or federal law.
   25         (b) Impose liability on providers of an interactive
   26  computer service, communications service as defined in s.
   27  202.11(1), commercial mobile service, or information service,
   28  including, but not limited to, an Internet access service
   29  provider and a hosting service provider, if they provide the
   30  transmission, storage, or caching of electronic communications
   31  or messages of others or provide another related
   32  telecommunications service, commercial mobile radio service, or
   33  information service, for use of such services by another person
   34  in violation of this section. This exemption from liability is
   35  consistent with and in addition to any liability exemption
   36  provided under 47 U.S.C. s. 230.
   37         (3) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term:
   38         (a) “Commercial recording or audiovisual work” means a
   39  recording or audiovisual work whose owner, assignee, authorized
   40  agent, or licensee has disseminated or intends to disseminate
   41  such recording or audiovisual work for sale, for rental, or for
   42  performance or exhibition to the public, including under
   43  license, but does not include an excerpt consisting of less than
   44  substantially all of a recording or audiovisual work. A
   45  recording or audiovisual work may be commercial regardless of
   46  whether a person who electronically disseminates it seeks
   47  commercial advantage or private financial gain from the
   48  dissemination. The term does not include video games, depictions
   49  of video game play, or the streaming of video game activity.
   50         (b) “Electronic dissemination” means initiating a
   51  transmission of, making available, or otherwise offering a
   52  commercial recording or audiovisual work for distribution
   53  through the Internet or other digital network, regardless of
   54  whether another person has previously electronically
   55  disseminated the same commercial recording or audiovisual work.
   56         (c) “E-mail address” means an electronic mail address as
   57  defined in s. 668.602.
   58         (d) “Website” means a set of related web pages served from
   59  a single web domain. The term does not include a home page or
   60  channel page for the user account of a person who is not the
   61  owner or operator of the website upon which such user home page
   62  or channel page appears.
   63         (4) DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION.—
   64         (a) A person who owns or operates a website or online
   65  service dealing in substantial part in the electronic
   66  dissemination of commercial recordings or audiovisual works,
   67  directly or indirectly, and who electronically disseminates such
   68  works to consumers in this state shall clearly and conspicuously
   69  disclose his or her true and correct name, physical address, and
   70  telephone number or e-mail address on his or her website or
   71  online service in a location readily accessible to a consumer
   72  using or visiting the website or online service.
   73         (b) The following locations are deemed readily accessible
   74  for purposes of this subsection:
   75         1. A landing or home web page or screen;
   76         2. An “about” or “about us” web page or screen;
   77         3. A “contact” or “contact us” web page or screen;
   78         4. An information web page or screen; or
   79         5. Another place on the website or online service commonly
   80  used to display identifying information to consumers.
   81         (5) INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—
   82         (a) An owner, assignee, authorized agent, or licensee of a
   83  commercial recording or audio visual work electronically
   84  disseminated by a website or online service in violation of this
   85  section may bring a private cause of action to obtain a
   86  declaratory judgment that an act or practice violates this
   87  section and enjoin any person who knowingly has violated, is
   88  violating, or is otherwise likely to violate this section. As a
   89  condition precedent to filing a civil action under this section,
   90  the aggrieved party must make reasonable efforts to place an
   91  individual alleged to be in violation of this section on notice
   92  that the individual may be in violation of this section and that
   93  failure to cure within 14 days may result in a civil action
   94  filed in a court of competent jurisdiction.
   95         (b) Upon motion of the party instituting the action, the
   96  court may make appropriate orders to compel compliance with this
   97  section.
   98         (c) The prevailing party in a cause under this section is
   99  entitled to recover necessary expenses and reasonable attorney
  100  fees.
  101         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2015.