Did the Digital Millenium Copyright Act Save the Web?

The DMCA may be responsible for the Internet we know today. That's what claims Wired who goes as far as stating that the DMCA saved the Web.

Indeed, in his article, David Kravets explains how the Digital Millenium Copyright Act combined with the Communications Decency Act enabled people to take the initiatives that led to the creation of the various social platforms that made the Web 2.0 such as YouTube and MySpace, to name a few.

This conclusion appeared as the two acts protect the intermediaries that is to say the creators of content-sharing platforms, isolating them from the utilization the Web users make of them. However, this protection is only valid as long as the owners instantly take down copyrighted content following a take down notice.

But Techdirt has a more-balanced view on the subject because while he does not overlook the benefits of the DMCA, he insists more on the CDA, which he thinks would have developed into an equivalent Act, in terms.

So whether you agree or disagree with one or the other, it's still funny to see how an Act that was passed ten years ago has helped shape the Web of today.