Is There a Better Way Than SOPA to Fight Online Piracy?
Looming on the near horizon is a piece of legislature that would give our government the power to censor the internet. This bill is at the behest of, and to protect the interests of, the entertainment industry. The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is a bill that would give U.S. law enforcement and copyright holders the power to shut down a site with any content they feel infringes on their copyright. While we believe that intellectual property should definitely be protected, the concern is that the power that this bill would give to the entertainment industry and the U.S. Government is a slippery slope.
The first video tape recorders and MP3 players were the subject of lawsuits from the industry. Yet, somehow they both of the technologies have become indispensible in our daily lives and neither has shut down the entertainment industry. Tools are already in place to prevent piracy, Internet Providers will shut down your service if you abuse it, peer-to-peer music sites have been sued to non-existence and lawsuits can be served to those who infringe on the copyright holders intellectual property.
The bill suggests changes to the basic fabric of the internet may cause technical issues and lessen security. It would cause an ever escalating cycle of people trying to get around the security. Search engines would be forced to delete offending links, a nearly impossible job.
Under the current ambiguous wording of the bill, social networking sites would be held responsible for any content its users post, essentially forcing them to censor their users or be held criminally responsible.
The real dangers of ambiguous written bill like this, is its potential for misuse. Who’s to say if the “spirit of law” has been upheld or misused? If this passes in the US, expect similar legislature to pass worldwide. This could stifle any criticism or discussion of policy elsewhere.
Educate yourself on SOPA and its sister bill PIPA and decide for yourself, but if you decide that there may be smarter more targeted ways to fight online piracy, then please take action. To let congress know that you are against censoring the internet contact your representatives and follow this link to sign a petition.