Akordly — Copyright Policy

Effective date: 2026-04-23 Last updated: 2026-04-23

Akordly respects the intellectual property rights of others and expects users to do the same. This policy explains:

  1. how rightsholders can ask us to remove infringing content;
  2. how users whose content has been removed can file a counter-notice; and
  3. how we handle repeat infringers.

Although Akordly is operated from Israel, we voluntarily follow the notice-and-takedown procedure set out in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), 17 U.S.C. § 512, and accept equivalent notices from rightsholders under their local copyright laws.

1. Summary of what we host

Users can upload audio files they own or are authorized to use, or submit URLs to publicly available videos (e.g., YouTube) for analysis. We generate chord charts, section markers, and — where the user enables them — lyric transcriptions. Our system does not publish user uploads, make them searchable, or share them with other users.

2. How to submit a copyright notice

If you believe that a specific piece of user-uploaded content, or content we produced from a user-submitted URL, infringes your copyright, send a written notice to our designated agent. Your notice must include:

  1. Identification of the copyrighted work you claim has been infringed (or a representative list if there are multiple works in one notice).
  2. Identification of the allegedly infringing material and information reasonably sufficient for us to locate it — ideally the Akordly song URL or ID, the title or description of the track, and the username (if known).
  3. Your contact information — full legal name, postal address, telephone number, and email address.
  4. A good-faith statement that you believe the use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
  5. A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or are authorized to act on the owner's behalf.
  6. Your physical or electronic signature.

Missing any of these elements may delay or invalidate your notice.

3. Designated agent

Send notices to our designated agent:

  • Name: TODO(fill): operator's legal name
  • Postal address: TODO(fill): mailing address
  • Telephone: TODO(fill): phone number reachable during business hours
  • Email: copyright@akordly.net

We aim to acknowledge valid notices within 48 hours and to act on them (by removing or disabling access to the material) expeditiously.

We also intend to register our designated agent with the U.S. Copyright Office at dmca.copyright.gov so notices can also be directed there; registration is pending until the filing completes.

4. What happens after a valid notice

If a notice is valid on its face:

  1. We remove or disable access to the identified material promptly.
  2. We notify the user who uploaded it, forward a copy of the notice, and explain the counter-notice option.
  3. We add the content's cryptographic hash to our blocked_hashes list so the same audio cannot be re-uploaded. Where applicable, the YouTube video identifier's hash is also added, so the same source cannot be re-ingested under a different URL.
  4. We record the notice in our audit log, which is retained for at least 2 years.

5. Counter-notice

If you are an Akordly user whose content has been removed and you believe the removal was a mistake or misidentification, you may send a counter-notice to copyright@akordly.net. It must include:

  1. Identification of the removed material and the location where it appeared before removal.
  2. A statement, under penalty of perjury, that you have a good-faith belief the material was removed as a result of mistake or misidentification.
  3. Your full legal name, postal address, telephone number, and email address.
  4. A statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the competent courts of your judicial district (for U.S. residents) or an equivalent competent court where you live, and that you will accept service of process from the complainant or their agent.
  5. Your physical or electronic signature.

If we receive a valid counter-notice, we will forward it to the complainant. If the complainant does not file a court action seeking an order against you within 10–14 business days (per §512(g)), we may restore the removed material.

6. Repeat-infringer policy

We terminate, in appropriate circumstances, the accounts of users who are repeat infringers. Our standard is three-strikes: after the third valid takedown against the same user, we terminate the account. Egregious single incidents — for example, uploading clearly pirated commercial catalogues at scale — may result in termination on a single strike.

Terminated users are not permitted to create new accounts to circumvent termination.

7. Hash-based blocking

Once an audio file has been the subject of a valid takedown, its cryptographic hash is added to our blocked_hashes collection. Future uploads or YouTube ingests whose audio content or source identifier matches a blocked hash are refused automatically with a clear error message. This is proactive compliance, not perfect filtering — we do not use probabilistic content-ID systems.

8. Misrepresentations

Under DMCA §512(f), a person who knowingly materially misrepresents in a notice or counter-notice that material is infringing or was removed by mistake may be liable for damages, including costs and attorneys' fees. Analogous liability exists in other jurisdictions. Please send notices responsibly.

9. Non-U.S. rightsholders

Rightsholders outside the United States are welcome to use the same procedure. You do not need to cite the DMCA; describing the work, the location of the infringing material, and your contact details is sufficient. We evaluate notices under the applicable law — for example, the EU Copyright Directive, the UK CDPA, or Israel's Copyright Law 5768-2007.

10. Trademark and other intellectual-property concerns

For trademark, right-of-publicity, or other non-copyright intellectual-property concerns, use the same contact (copyright@akordly.net) and describe the issue in plain language. We'll respond under the applicable law.

11. Contact