Recognizing the risks to copyrighted works presented by digital technology and internet distribution, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in its 1996 WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) included a requirement that countries that join the treaties provide "adequate legal protection and effective legal remedies against the circumvention of effective technological measures" that are used by authors in connection with the exercise of their rights under the treaty or the Berne Convention and that restrict acts "not authorized by the authors concerned or permitted by law." The 1996 WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) contains a similar provision.

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), passed by the U.S. Congress in October 1998, implements the WIPO Treaties in U.S. law. The portion prohibiting circumvention of technological protection of copyrighted works is codified in a new chapter 12 to Title 17 of the U.S. Code. These provisions change the law in ways that have major significance for both copyright owners and users. The IIPP's study explored the impact of such provisions.

The study focused on the many issues raised by anti-circumvention legislation, and by the requirements of the WIPO treaties. Among the questions explored were: Should anti-circumvention legislation be subject to a general "legitimate purposes" exception, or will this render such legislation ineffective? To what extent do anti-circumvention provisions inhibit use of copyrighted works for "legitimate purposes"? Are there specific exceptions in the DMCA that should be narrowed or eliminated or others that should be included? Is there a sound rationale for permitting circumvention in some cases, yet restricting devices that enable that activity? How effective are technological measures in protecting copyrighted works now, and how effective are they likely to be in the future? How are other countries implementing the anti-circumvention provisions of the treaties?

In the course of its study the IIPP consulted with individual legal experts, domestic and foreign, as well as technological consultants. The IIPP conducted a series of roundtable discussions with interested groups and entities, e.g., representatives of authors' collecting societies, various copyright industries, librarians, educators, user groups, etc.

The Final Report was published in the Spring 2004 issue of the Columbia Journal of Law and the Arts, Volume 27, No. 4.