17 U.S.C. § 1204

Criminal offenses and penalties

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(a)In General.—Any person who violates section 1201 or 1202 willfully and for purposes of commercial advantage or private financial gain—(1) shall be fined not more than $500,000 or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, for the first offense; and(2) shall be fined not more than $1,000,000 or imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both, for any subsequent offense.(b)Limitation for Nonprofit Library, Archives, Educational Institution, or Public Broadcasting Entity.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to a nonprofit library, archives, educational institution, or public broadcasting entity (as defined under section 118(f)).(c)Statute of Limitations.—No criminal proceeding shall be brought under this section unless such proceeding is commenced within 5 years after the cause of action arose.(Added Pub. L. 105–304, title I, § 103(a), Oct. 28, 1998, 112 Stat. 2876; amended Pub. L. 106–113, div. B, § 1000(a)(9) [title V, § 5004(b)], Nov. 29, 1999, 113 Stat. 1536, 1501A–593; Pub. L. 111–295, § 6(f)(3), Dec. 9, 2010, 124 Stat. 3181.)Editorial NotesAmendments

2010—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 111–295 substituted “118(f)” for “118(g)”.

1999—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 106–113 amended heading and text of subsec. (b) generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: “Subsection (a) shall not apply to a nonprofit library, archives, or educational institution.”

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 7 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 2014–2025 · leading case: United States v. Jeffrey Reichert, 747 F.3d 445 (6th Cir. 2014).

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United States v. Jeffrey Reichert, 747 F.3d 445 (6th Cir. 2014). · cites it 10× “com, a website that hosted online forums dedicated to the discussion of modifying video game consoles by installing “modification chips” (or “mod chips”) in them so that they could run software for which the consoles were not originally designed.”

Green v. U.S. Dep't of Just., 392 F. Supp. 3d 68 (D.C. Cir. 2019). “§ 1203 , and potential criminal liability under the DMCA's criminal offense provision, 17 U.S.C. § 1204 . Id. ¶¶ 86-87, 109-10 .”

United States v. Wittich, 54 F. Supp. 3d 613 (E.D. La. 2014). · cites it 8× “§ 1201 (a)(2)(A), 17 U.S.C. § 1204 (a)(1)). . Id. (citing 17 U.”

United States v. William Silvius, 559 F. App'x 490 (6th Cir. 2014). “Under 17 U.S.C. § 1204 , a person who “willfully” violates § 1201(a)(2)(A) “for purposes of commercial advantage or private financial gain” faces a five-year statutory maximum imprisonment sentence and a maximum $500,000 fine.”

Green v. U.S. Dep't of Just. (D.D.C. 2019). “§ 1203 , and potential criminal liability under the DMCA’s criminal offense provision, 17 U.S.C. § 1204 . Id. ¶¶ 86-87, 109-10 .”

United States v. Ankita Singh (6th Cir. 2025). “2014) (noting the parties’ agreement that Bryan applies to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 1204 (a)); United States v. Chowdhury, 169 F.”

United States v. William Silvius (6th Cir. 2014). “Under 17 U.S.C. § 1204 , a person who “willfully” violates § 1201(a)(2)(A) “for purposes of commercial advantage or private financial gain” faces a five-year statutory maximum imprisonment sentence and a maximum $500,000 fine.”

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