This has been brewing for some time...but here is an update.
It is of significant importance not only to photographers, but all artists.

http://www.renderosity.com/mod/forumpro/showthread.php?thread_id=2734530

That doesn't look good. Why mess with things as they stand I wonder?

gradient, thanks very much for this info.  Yes, this does look scary.  

so much for anti piracy laws

I think the next question to ask is: what if your work is on a non-US site, i.e. the owners are not in the US but the server or domain name is in the US (.com).
Plus this looks like a US proposal and I think companies would find it hard to 'steal' international work...

@PeeWee05;
Yes, that is where this law does get blurry...but, FWIW, here is a quote from the thread I had linked above;

**"At this point I would assume that works created in a non-U.S. country would be protected by the author's home laws. However, as the article notes, if this passes in the U.S. it may also set a precedent for similar legislation in other countries simply because there is much money to be made.

Last year there were some countries that indicated if this law passes, they would actively recommend that persons in their own countries should not display works in the U.S. at all."

**
@everyone else;

In a nutshell, if this law passes....it would mean that if your work has NOT been registered, it *could * be classified as an *"orphan" * work....in other words, it can be used by anyone in any manner, without compensation to the original artist.

i highly doubt this law will pass.

Mmmm, that works into Piracy and I'm sure clips from old movies will be exploited too after the 99 years copyright law... It's very grey.

One big can of worms being opened thats for sure.  Anytime the U.S. government is concerned....I have to do one of these.... :rolleyes:!