Carolyn Wright, noted photo attorney, recently did a Q&A with NAPP members to help clarify some of the details that surround Copyright and OWA:
1. So, what's the difference between current copyright law and the proposed Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act?
The main difference is that if the infringer shows due diligence in attempting to find the owner of a copyrighted work prior to using it, the infringer will not be subject to statutory damages or attorney's fees for the infringement. Instead, the infringer will only have to pay reasonable compensation for the use.
2. Who would be responsible for maintaining any database of copyrighted material?
That is to be determined by the US Copyright Office.
3. What if a copyright owner comes forward, does use have to stop or is there anything in the way of compensation?
At that point, the work would no longer be an orphan, so the owner and the infringer would negotiate for future use as would have been done in the first place. However, there is an exception in the OW act that the infringer could continue to use the work if it has been integrated into a derivative work as long as the infringer pays reasonable compensation and provides reasonable attribution (such as a photo credit).
Thanks to Carolyn for taking the time to help out with spreading the word about OWA. Her site is a very good source of legal information, and can be found here: Photo Attorney