Because of the algorithm change called “DMCA Penalty”, which Google announced on 08/10/2012 and implemented a week thereafter, websites for which Google repeatedly received DMCA takedown requests are now punished, which puts them in the back of the search results.
Discover how SISTRIX can be used to improve your search marketing. 14 day free, no-commitment trial with all data and tools: Test SISTRIX for free
As a signal for a possible penalty, Google looks at the number of so called “valid copyright removal notices”.
In other words: Google punishes websites that have many “DMCA takedown requests” and thus are suspected to go against copyright law.
What is a DMCA takedown request?
The abbreviation “DMCA” means “Digital Millennium Copyright Act”. This law from the United States of America extends the rights of copyright owners.
A so called “DMCA takedown request” is a request from the copyright owners or governments towards Google to remove a page from the search results or the index, based on the DMCA.
If a website was removed with regards to a US Digital Millennium Copyright Act complaint, a hint will appear on the specific search result page:
Which websites are affected?
Google releases the number of requests received from copyright owners and governments on a website specifically created for this purpose and provides a list with domains to be removed (see link below). This way you can get an idea of what “kind” of pages are affected.
Test SISTRIX for Free
- Free 14-day test account
- Non-binding. No termination necessary
- Personalised on-boarding with experts
