ATLANTA—Professional Photographers of America (PPA) announced support of The Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Act, S. 522, which was introduced into the Senate recently by Senator Evan Bayh (D-IN) and Senator George Voinovich (R-OH), and co-sponsored by Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS) and Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH)  in a letter to Senator Bayh this week. PPA is joined by its partner organizations, the Society for Sports & Event Photographers (SEP), Commercial Photographers International (CPI) and the Student Photographic Society (SPS), representing over 30,000 professional photographers across the U.S. 

“Protecting copyrights is fundamental to our members, and we are pleased to support this important bill that treats intellectual theft with the seriousness it demands,” stated PPA President Jack Reznicki.

The legislation would establish an Intellectual Property Enforcement Network (IPEN) to replace the looser, interagency approach currently responsible for coordinating IP enforcement efforts. Under the proposed legislation, federal agencies would coordinate and share information to aid each other in identifying, tracking, arresting and prosecuting IP criminals.

Professional photographers are often the smallest of small businesses despite being some of the largest producers of copyrighted materials. Because of this, copyright infringement has a great impact on photographers’ business success.

“Even a few copyright infringements can deal a significant blow to a photographer’s livelihood. But using federal courts to enforce their rights is often too expensive,” stated PPA CEO David Trust.  He added, “We applaud and welcome a more active role from the Federal Government in helping our members secure their constitutional rights.”

Professional Photographers of America (PPA), a worldwide association, exists to assist its more than 18,000 members in achieving their professional, artistic, and fraternal goals; to promote public awareness of the profession; and to advance the making of images in all of its disciplines as an art, a science and a visual recorder of history. For more information, visit www.PPA.com.

The Society of Sport & Event Photographers (SEP) is a private, non-profit association dedicated exclusively to serving the needs of sport and event photographers. SEP marshals the resources of the event photography industry and delivers them to its members via their exclusive online content, Action News publication and live events. For more information, visit www.SEPsociety.com.

Commercial Photographers International (CPI) is an energetic, non-profit membership organization focused on the changing needs of commercial photographers. Led by successful commercial photographer volunteers and a skilled professional staff, CPI has put together information, resources and materials for photographers in this rapidly changing industry. For more information, visit www.MyCPI.com.

The Student Photographic Society (SPS) was founded in 1999 to provide career-building resources, networking opportunities, and information resources to photography students. For more information, visit http://studentphoto.com.

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