SOPA and PIPA
two bills that could affect ALL of us - not only Americans!
The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is a law (bill) of the United States proposed in 2011 to fight online trafficking in copyrighted intellectual property and counterfeit goods. Proposals include barring advertising networks and payment facilities from conducting business with allegedly infringing websites, barring search engines from linking to the sites, and requiring Internet service providers (ISP) to block access to the sites. The bill would criminalize the streaming of such content, with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
User-content websites such as YouTube would be greatly affected, and concern has been expressed that they may be shut down if the bill becomes law. Opponents state the legislation would enable law enforcement to remove an entire internet domain due to something posted on a single blog, arguing that an entire online community could be punished for the actions of a tiny minority. In a 1998 law, copyright owners are required to request the site to remove the infringing material within a certain amount of time. SOPA would bypass this "safe harbor" provision by placing the responsibility for detecting and policing infringement onto the site itself.
Lobbyists for companies that rely heavily on revenue from intellectual property copyright state it protects the market and corresponding industry, jobs, and revenue. The US president and legislators suggest it may kill innovation. Representatives of the American Library Association state the changes could encourage criminal prosecution of libraries. Other opponents state that requiring search engines to delete a domain name begins a worldwide arms race of unprecedented censorship of the Web and violates the First Amendment.
User-content websites such as YouTube would be greatly affected, and concern has been expressed that they may be shut down if the bill becomes law. Opponents state the legislation would enable law enforcement to remove an entire internet domain due to something posted on a single blog, arguing that an entire online community could be punished for the actions of a tiny minority. In a 1998 law, copyright owners are required to request the site to remove the infringing material within a certain amount of time. SOPA would bypass this "safe harbor" provision by placing the responsibility for detecting and policing infringement onto the site itself.
Lobbyists for companies that rely heavily on revenue from intellectual property copyright state it protects the market and corresponding industry, jobs, and revenue. The US president and legislators suggest it may kill innovation. Representatives of the American Library Association state the changes could encourage criminal prosecution of libraries. Other opponents state that requiring search engines to delete a domain name begins a worldwide arms race of unprecedented censorship of the Web and violates the First Amendment.
On January 18, English Wikipedia, Reddit, and several other internet companies coordinated a service blackout to protest SOPA and its sister bill, the Protect IP Act, an estimated 7,000 smaller websites either joined in or posted some kind of protest. Companies, including Google, posted links and images in an effort to raise awareness. A number of other protest actions were organized, including petition drives and boycotts of companies that support the legislation.
Millions of Americans oppose SOPA and PIPA because these bills would censor the Internet and slow economic growth in the U.S.
Two bills before Congress, known as the Protect IP Act (PIPA) in the Senate and the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House, would censor the Web and impose harmful regulations on American business. Millions of Internet users and entrepreneurs already oppose SOPA and PIPA.
The Senate will begin voting on January 24th
Please let them know how you feel.
Sign the GOOGLE petition urging Congress to vote NO on PIPA and SOPA before it is too late.
Please SIGN by clicking HERE!
See the Related Legislation page for other bills related to 'H.R. 3261 Stop Online Piracy Act' and a list of subject terms that have been applied to this bill.
Sign the GOOGLE petition urging Congress to vote
NO on PIPA and SOPA before it is too late.
SOPA stopped: Chief sponsor delays action indefinitely
Immediately following Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-NV) decision to postpone a full vote on the “PROTECT IP Act” (PIPA), which was originally scheduled for Tuesday, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), chief sponsor of the “Stop Online Piracy Act” (SOPA), has announced that he will delay further consideration of the contentious anti-piracy bill in the House “until there is wider agreement on a solution.” Earlier this week, Smith said that he would resume markup hearings on SOPA by the House Judiciary Committee, of which he is chairman, in February.
The interruption of both bills follows Wednesday’s mass online blackout held in protest of the companion anti-piracy bills.
“I have heard from the critics and I take seriously their concerns regarding proposed legislation to address the problem of online piracy,” said Smith in a statement. “It is clear that we need to revisit the approach on how best to address the problem of foreign thieves that steal and sell American inventions and products.”
This statement stands in stark contrast to Smith’s earlier remarks about the opposition to SOPA and PIPA, in which brushed off their warnings that the bills could put and end to the free and open Internet as we know it as illegitimate, and without merit.
The interruption of both bills follows Wednesday’s mass online blackout held in protest of the companion anti-piracy bills.
“I have heard from the critics and I take seriously their concerns regarding proposed legislation to address the problem of online piracy,” said Smith in a statement. “It is clear that we need to revisit the approach on how best to address the problem of foreign thieves that steal and sell American inventions and products.”
This statement stands in stark contrast to Smith’s earlier remarks about the opposition to SOPA and PIPA, in which brushed off their warnings that the bills could put and end to the free and open Internet as we know it as illegitimate, and without merit.
“The problem of online piracy is too big to ignore,” Smith added. “American intellectual property industries provide 19 million high-paying jobs and account for more than 60 percent of U.S. exports. The theft of America’s intellectual property costs the U.S. economy more than $100 billion annually and results in the loss of thousands of American jobs. Congress cannot stand by and do nothing while American innovators and job creators are under attack.”
“The online theft of American intellectual property is no different than the theft of products from a store. It is illegal and the law should be enforced both in the store and online,” he said.
Prior to Wednesday’s blackout, which saw more than 75,000 websites “go black” in protest, SOPA and PIPA enjoyed the support of 80 members of Congress, while just 31 members stood in opposition to these bills. By Thursday, the balance of power shifted dramatically, with only 63 members in both houses of Congress in support of SOPA/PIPA, and 122 opposed, according to ProPublica.
While the delay of SOPA and PIPA is testament to the power of the opposition movement to sway Congress, it is also obvious that the fight is far from over. Both Sen. Reid and Rep. Smith have vowed to continue the fight against piracy, and could revive these bills — or others like them — at any time.
In Case You Missed It:
This article was originally posted on Digital Trends
“The online theft of American intellectual property is no different than the theft of products from a store. It is illegal and the law should be enforced both in the store and online,” he said.
Prior to Wednesday’s blackout, which saw more than 75,000 websites “go black” in protest, SOPA and PIPA enjoyed the support of 80 members of Congress, while just 31 members stood in opposition to these bills. By Thursday, the balance of power shifted dramatically, with only 63 members in both houses of Congress in support of SOPA/PIPA, and 122 opposed, according to ProPublica.
While the delay of SOPA and PIPA is testament to the power of the opposition movement to sway Congress, it is also obvious that the fight is far from over. Both Sen. Reid and Rep. Smith have vowed to continue the fight against piracy, and could revive these bills — or others like them — at any time.
In Case You Missed It:
- PIPA vote canceled by Sen. Harry Reid
- SOPA/PIPA blackout: By the numbers
- Sen. Marco Rubio drops support of PIPA, a bill he co-sponsored [Update: 2nd Sen. backs down]
- January 18 SOPA/PIPA blackout: A quick guide
This article was originally posted on Digital Trends
SOPA & PIPA Only Delayed NOT STOPPED - Keep up the pressure!
Click to set custom HTML
Trying to amend or fix SOPA & PIPA is like putting whip cream on crap - they might look more appealling, but underneath they are still crap and they must be flushed not fixed!
SOPA & PIPA are not bills that can be amended into something acceptable, they must die completely.
What can you do?
Sign the GOOGLE PETITION above and contact the members on the Senate Judiciary Committee and ask them to do the only right thing and to STOP any and all discussions on PIPA.
For a list of all the members on the Senate Judiciary Committee click here.
SOPA & PIPA are not bills that can be amended into something acceptable, they must die completely.
What can you do?
Sign the GOOGLE PETITION above and contact the members on the Senate Judiciary Committee and ask them to do the only right thing and to STOP any and all discussions on PIPA.
For a list of all the members on the Senate Judiciary Committee click here.
Update 22 January 2012:
US Senate leaders are backing away from a vote this week! But they're refusing to kill the bill, hoping our pressure will die down. Let's show them they're wrong.
Posted 18 January 2012:
Scroll down to increase our impact -- contact politicians and companies pushing for censorship and tell them to drop the bill.
Today could be the day we save the free Internet.
The US Congress was poised to pass a law allowing the US to censor access to any website around the world. But after we delivered our 1.25 million strong petition to the White House, it came out against the bill and with public pressure at boiling point even some bill backers are switching sides. Now, the Wikipedia led blackout protest has rocketed the public campaign to the top of the news.
We are turning the tide. But the dark forces of censorship are trying to revive the bill right now. Let’s bury it for good today. Sign this emergency petition to save the Internet now and if you've signed already, to email, call, Facebook, and tweet Congressional and corporate targets. Then send this to everyone.
Let’s tell the bill's supporters to kill the bill...
Please SIGN THE AVAAZ-PETITION
