Copyright Infringement Inquiries

At Flightsim.to, we are committed to respecting intellectual property rights and adhering to legal standards, including those set forth by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. This guide outlines our approach to handling DMCA requests. The DMCA is a United States federal law that provides guidelines and remedies for copyright issues in the digital age. Flightsim.to hosts content that is created by other users, making it crucial for us to comply with the DMCA to protect the intellectual property rights of creators. Compliance helps us maintain a trusted platform by preventing copyright infringement, which in turn fosters a creative and respectful environment.

Submitting a Copyright Infringement Notification if your copyright has been infringed

If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, or that your intellectual property rights have been otherwise violated, please provide us with the following information. The more details and the more accurate your notification is, the faster we will be able to process your report.

1 Identify the copyrighted work you believe has been infringed. The link to the copyright infringing file or content that you are refering to.
2 The link to the original content. Where can we find the original work that is protected by your copyright?
3 A presice description of which of your copyrighted contents have been infringed and how you did come to the conclusion that the content infringes your copyright. It is important to be as specific as possible in your identification. This identification needs to be reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the infringing material. We need the exact file names within the affected content to identify the copyright violation.
4 Your Contact Information. This includes the full name, address, telephone number and email address of the Complainant.
5 Include the following statement: "I have a good faith belief that use of the copyrighted materials described above is not authorized by the copyright owner, or its agent, or the law. I have taken fair use into consideration."
6 Also include the following statement: "I swear, under penalty of perjury, that the information in this notification is accurate and that I am the copyright owner, or am authorized to act on behalf of the owner, of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed."
7 Sign your complaint by your full first and last name.

The DMCA requires that you swear to the facts in your copyright complaint under penalty of perjury. It is a federal crime to intentionally lie in a sworn declaration - see U.S. Code, Title 18, Section 1621. Submitting false information could also result in civil liability — that is, you could get sued for money damages. The DMCA itself provides for damages against any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity is infringing.

Copyright is complex, and not everything you create - even if you create it yourself - is protected by copyright. Typically, a work must meet minimal standards of originality in order to qualify for copyright. In order to be protected, the work must be new, that is it must not be reproduced from an existing creation or already existing design concept. Please also note the legally recognised doctrine of Fair Use. Those who invoke on Fair Use to create works based on the copyrighted works of others cannot at the same time claim that they have made a contribution of their own, when their contribution solely lies in reproducing a work without creating an own artistic performance, which should be the case for most livery creations. If you are unsure whether material posted online infringes your copyrights, you should first consult an attorney.

How to submit a report?

If all requirements are met, you can submit your report by emailing legal@flightsim.to or using the form: 👉 Create DMCA Report

Our Reaction to a Valid DMCA Claim

We do our best to process all incoming requests with highest priority. However, the more details your complaint contains, the faster we can take action. Therefore, take special care to include all mandatory details, and if you want to speed up the process, attach some sample images, such as comparison images of the original and the infringing content, highlighting the similarities and differences of both files, to support your claims. You don't have to write a novel; it should only be obvious to us that there is definitely a copyright infringement.

Flightsim.to follows a Notice and Takedown Procedure. When Flightsim.to receives a valid DMCA notice (that is requirements 1-7 above are met), we follow a strict takedown procedure:

Review: We verify whether the DMCA claim meets the requirements of the law. If the claim is deemed valid, the alleged infringing content is promptly removed from the platform. Our response may also include terminating accounts.
Notification: The creator of the content in question is informed about the takedown and provided with details of the claim.

Our approach to handling DMCA notices is strictly procedural. We do not conduct individual reviews of files, nor do we request proof or assess the content of files against the claims made in DMCA notices - the DMCA explicitly disallows us to do so. Our responsibility is to ensure that each notice meets the legal requirements stipulated by the DMCA.

Understanding Our Non-Engagement in Disputes Between Creators

It is important to note that Flightsim.to does not participate in discussions or disputes between creators concerning copyright claims. Our role is strictly to follow the legal requirements set forth by the DMCA. We act as an intermediary to ensure that all legal standards are met, but we do not adjudicate conflicts between parties - nor is it our job or our responsibility under the law. This policy helps us maintain impartiality and focus on providing a platform that respects legal boundaries and copyright rules.

However, we understand that legal proceedings is not what both parties seek. We want to get this out of the way as easily as possible. The infringing user has the opportunity to make changes to their file and remove the alleged copyright infringement. They can then ask for the new file to be approved again if they assure us that the copyright infringement has been removed. In such a case, we inform the sender of the DMCA complaint that the copyright infringement has been removed and the user has uploaded a new file. The complainant can review this new file and decide if they want to uphold the complaint if they believe the copyright infringement has not been removed, or if they want to drop the complaint, with the consequence that access to the new file will be re-enabled. If the complainant ignores further correspondence, we will consider the uploaded file to be a new file, and, if necessary, a new complaint must be filed.

Appealing a Copyright Takedown

If you are a creator affected by a DMCA takedown, you have the option to contest the claim if you believe it was made in error or if you hold the necessary rights to use the disputed content. It is important to note that your content had to be removed due to the requirements of the law and Flightsim.to does not have the authority to decide whether such removal was necessary or correct. We only check that the requirements of the law are met.

To speed up the legal procedure, if you believe your content was removed or disabled as a result of a mistake or misidentification and does not constitute a copyright infringement, we will then notify the complainant of this. In such a case, we share the complaining party's contact information (email address) with the user so that direct contact can be made for further discussion between both parties. We are not the judge and we are not allowed to interfere or take sides. Any communication is up to the parties. Either the complaining party informs us that they want to drop the complaint, or the complaining party continues to adhere to their complaint and does not engage in discussion with the user. In the latter case where the complaint is still uphold, we ask the user to file a formal DMCA Counter Notice as required by law - see next section - if they still believe their content has been removed for no valid reason. If the user files a DMCA Counter Notice which complies with all legal requirements, the law requires us to wait 14 days and then re-enable the content unless the copyright owner initiates a legal action against the user before then. From that point on, it's up to the parties to solve the matter in court.

DMCA Counter Notices

If you believe your content was mistakenly disabled by a DMCA takedown request, you have the right to contest the takedown by submitting a counter notice. If you do, we will wait 14 days and then re-enable your content unless the copyright owner initiates a legal action against you before then. As with all legal matters, it is always best to consult with a professional about your specific questions or situation. We strongly encourage you to do so before taking any action that might impact your rights. This guide isn't legal advice and shouldn't be taken as such.

The DMCA requires that you swear to your counter notice under penalty of perjury. It is a federal crime to intentionally lie in a sworn declaration - see U.S. Code, Title 18, Section 1621. Submitting false information could also result in civil liability — that is, you could get sued for money damages. In order to file a counter notice, you must have "a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled".

We require you to fill out all fields of a counter notice completely, because a counter notice is a legal statement — not just to us, but to the complaining party. As we mentioned above, if the complaining party wishes to keep the content disabled after receiving a counter notice, they will need to initiate a legal action seeking a court order to restrain you from engaging in infringing activity relating to the content on Flightsim.to. In other words, you might get sued. Flightsim.to. exercises little discretion in this process other than determining whether the notices meet the minimum requirements of the DMCA. It is up to the parties and their lawyers to evaluate the merit of their claims, bearing in mind that notices must be made under penalty of perjury.

What must my counter notice include?

1 Identify the work you believe has been removed by mistake. The link to the file or content that has been removed.
2 A presice description of why you think that the content has been removed by mistake. If you think of your counter notice as a "note" to the complaining party, this is a chance to explain why they should not take the next step and file a lawsuit in response.
3 Your Contact Information. This includes your full name, address, telephone number and email address.
4 Include the following statement: "I swear, under penalty of perjury, that I have a good-faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of a mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled."
5 Also include the following statement: "I consent to the jurisdiction of Federal District Court for the judicial district in which my address is located, and I will accept service of process from the person who provided the DMCA notification or an agent of such person."
6 Sign your counter notice by your full first and last name.

Our Response to a valid Counter Notice

If a copyright owner wishes to keep the content disabled after receiving a counter notice, they will need to initiate a legal action seeking a court order to restrain the user from engaging in infringing activity relating to the content on Flightsim.to. In other words, you might get sued. If the copyright owner does not give Flightsim.to notice within 14 days, by sending a copy of a valid legal complaint filed in a court of competent jurisdiction, Flightsim.to will re-enable the disabled content.