Web-Wide Protests Escalate Fight Over Piracy Bills
January 17, 2012
| 4:07 PM
The war between big media and big tech over a pair of bills aimed at curbing piracy reached new heights on Wednesday.
Thousands of websites 'went dark' in protest of the bills before Congress, arguing that they effectively allow censorship of the Internet. Proponents of the bills -- the Stop Online Piracy Act in the House and Protect IP in the Senate -- argue that the legislation simply gives the government the authority to pursue sites that enable piracy.
Some sites, such as online encyclopedia Wikipedia and social news site Reddit, blocked access to their content altogether, while others, including Google, prominently featured their opposition to the bills. Google, which obscured its logo with a black censorship bar, is the most popular website domestically and globally, according to traffic-tracker Alexa, while Wikipedia is ranked sixth.
The legislation is opposed by other leading tech firms, including Facebook and Yahoo, as well as entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, civil libertarians and a growing chorus of Internet activists. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has said in recent days that he will go forward with a vote next week on a Senate version of the House bill known as Protect IP.
Critics argue that Protect IP and SOPA will stifle innovation and online free speech and in their current forms could harm the integrity and security of the Internet. Even though the bill's sponsors have offered to remove the most controversial provision calling on service providers and others to block access to foreign infringing websites, critics say that change isn't enough. During a conference call Tuesday, Reddit General Manager Erik Martin said the definitions in the bill are "vague and extreme."
The bill's congressional supporters, however, pushed back Tuesday, arguing that opponents are over blowing the impact of the legislation.
"It is ironic that a website dedicated to providing information is spreading misinformation about the Stop Online Piracy Act," House Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith, R-Texas, said in response to Wikipedia's announcement that it will join the blackout protest. "The bill will not harm Wikipedia, domestic blogs or social networking sites. This publicity stunt does a disservice to its users by promoting fear instead of facts. Perhaps during the blackout, Internet users can look elsewhere for an accurate definition of online piracy."
Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., chairman of the House Judiciary Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet Subcommittee, also voiced frustration Tuesday that critics are not offering more concrete proposals to fix the legislation.
"I think that what we need to have is a discourse about what works and what doesn't work," said Goodlatte, who helped draft SOPA, following remarks Tuesday at the annual State of the Net conference. "A blackout doesn't accomplish that. The more important thing here is that people talk to each other rather than blackout their patrons."
Motion Picture Association of America Chairman and CEO Chris Dodd criticized the blackout as a "gimmick." Dodd, a former Democratic U.S. senator from Connecticut, added that the blackout is "designed to punish elected and administration officials who are working diligently to protect American jobs from foreign criminals. It is our hope that the White House and the Congress will call on those who intend to stage this 'blackout' to stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to combat piracy." His group is part of a broad coalition of content producers and trademark owners that have been pushing for new tools to combat the growth in piracy and counterfeiting on foreign websites.
Critics of SOPA and Protect IP argue that the blackouts show the level of concern at the grassroots level to the legislation.
While not joining the blackout itself, Google has indicated it would post a statement on its homepage Wednesday reiterating its opposition to SOPA and Protect IP. Websites like Craigslist already have posted similar messages on their homepages urging opposition to the legislation.
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