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HR 3261, the “Stop Online Piracy Act” – or SOPA – is considered by its opponents to be an effort to give corporations the power to get Web sites shut down based on copyright infringement claims.
Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) introduced SOPA on Oct. 26. It’s similar to the Senate’s Protect IP Act, which has been placed on hold.
Google, Mozilla, Facebook, AOL, eBay, LinkedIn, Twitter, Zynga Game Network and Yahoo are among many SOPA opponents, who cite myriad potential issues, from censorship to security.
Bill supporters, who want an end put to “rogue sites” that infringe on copyright law include the AFL-CIO, the Recording Industry Association of America, Directors Guild of America, Screen Actors Guild, Independent Film & Television Alliance, National Association of Theatre Owners, Motion Picture Association of America, National Criminal Justice Association, National District Attorneys Association, Council of State Governments and National Sheriffs Association, among many more.
SOPA was praised on the day of its introduction by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which said it would provide law enforcement with refined legal tools to act against rogue sites that attract an estimated 53 billion visits per year.
Such sites, the chamber said, jeopardize the more than $7.7 trillion of U.S. GDP and 60 percent of exports that the industries they steal from produce for our economy.
According to a bill summary, it would authorize the attorney general to seek a court order to stop foreign Internet sites suspected of committing or facilitating online piracy from publishing pirated materials.
The bill sets up an additional two-step process in which intellectual property rights holders can provide written notification to U.S.-directed sites alleged to contain pirated materials. Those notifications would direct that a site’s services be suspended unless the site’s owner or operator provides a counter notification that it is not involved in violations.
In that process, intellectual property rights holders would be allowed to pursue injunctive relief against sites accused of violations, according to the bill’s language.
Service providers – including Internet service providers, payment network providers and online advertising services – would be required to withhold services from sites accused of violations.
SOPA also makes service providers, payment network providers, Internet advertising services, advertisers, Internet search engines, domain name registries or domain name registrars that take action to block sites legally immune.
The bill would expose owners of blacklisted Web sites to potential criminal prosecutions by expanding criminal copyright infringement to include digital transmission of copyrighted work and work intended for commercial dissemination that’s made available on a computer network.
Intellectual property offenses would be added to criminal offenses of trafficking in inherently dangerous goods or services.
Opponents are concerned that the bill would give corporations too much power – including the authority to shut down Web sites that are only accused of wrongdoing and which have not actually been proved to have published copyrighted material.
Another issue is that it’s possible SOPA could lead to Web site shutdowns and prosecutions over something as seemingly minor as an amateur cover of a copyrighted song, such as one might see on YouTube.
On Nov. 10, several members of Congress, including North Coast Congressman Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena), sent a letter to Smith and Congressman John Conyers expressing misgivings over the bill.
“You've previously stated that this legislation is intended to target 'rogue' foreign websites engaging in copyright infringement,” the letter stated. “While this is a laudable goal and one we support, the SOPA's overly broad language, in its current form, would target legitimate domestic websites, creating significant uncertainty for those in the technology and venture capital industries.”
The members of Congress who signed the letter warned that the legislation could in fact harm business and industry, causing investment in the Internet to dry up.
The House of Representatives’ Committee on the Judiciary held a hearing on SOPA were held on Nov. 16.
In preparation for the hearing, Smith – who chairs the committee – and Conyers, the committee’s ranking member, wrote to their colleagues to urge them to support the legislation, which they said “will modernize our criminal and civil statutes to meet new IP enforcement challenges and protect American investment and jobs.”
They added, “Rogue sites do not pay taxes, they do not adhere to manufacturing standards, they do not innovate, and they do not respect U.S. laws. They do steal American jobs, harm consumers, thwart the incentives that promote innovation and creativity, and undermine those engaged in legitimate Internet commerce.”
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), who in the Senate placed the hold on the Protect IP Act, read a statement into the record for the Nov. 16 meeting in which he warned that SOPA poses dangers to a free and open Internet, and vowed that he will fight such efforts.
No vote was reported as being taken in that hearing, and SOPA also is set for a hearing before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet.
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