Wednesday, January 18th, 2012 will forever be remembered as the day the Internet stood still. Maybe it wasn’t that dramatic. But it was difficult to ignore the massive strike over 115,000 websites joined in opposition to the ultra-super-controversial SOPA/PIPA legislation. So, what’s going on?
Looking at SOPA/PIPA
SOPA and PIPA are two closely related bills that were designed with good intentions, but questionable details. The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) were written to allow the United States government to crack down on piracy and copyright infringement, both of which have cost the U.S. billions of dollars in lost revenue. Aimed at “rogue sites,” or foreign websites out of reach of U.S. copyright laws, SOPA enables the government to require search engines and servers to cut all ties with any websites proven to host copyrighted material. Similarly, PIPA forces Internet providers to block access to infringing websites, among other methods to combat rogue websites.
In short, SOPA/PIPA can block websites that host copyrighted content. Sounds effective, right? Maybe a little too effective?
As with many things, the devil’s in the details: SOPA/PIPA is just a stone’s throw away from all-out Internet censorship, which is one of the main reasons why the proposed legislation is so controversial.
Opponents of SOPA/PIPA suggest that the bill would, in theory, put websites like YouTube, Facebook, and Tumblr at risk because if a user were to so much as post a link to copyrighted content, both the company and the user could face major legal consequences. In addition, a bill like SOPA or PIPA could be seen as a stepping stone into even more restrictive forms of legislation, creating an environment in which the Internet’s free and open structure is put in jeopardy.
Proponents of SOPA argue that the amount of piracy on the Internet needs to be addressed. While this is a valid point, censoring a website lends itself to the loss of innovation many critics argue is an inevitable and unintended consequence of SOPA/PIPA – after all, not all websites are rogue sources of pirated content and counterfeiting.
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Many websites offer inspiration and resources for artists, businessmen, and other professionals to benefit from, and if a website is shut down entirely, people are missing out on the opportunity to experience new sources of inspiration, even if it’s just a touching quote or a funny picture of a cat. That loss of opportunity seems inherently wrong.
One of the biggest supporters of the bill, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Tex.), said “claims that this bill will ‘break’ the Internet are unfounded. When one-quarter of Internet traffic is infringing, something is already in need of repair.” In response to the public outcry and in an attempt to set the record straight about SOPA’s intentions, he penned an amendment to the bill, which, as he states, “makes it clear that the legislation specifically targets the worst-of-the-worst foreign rogue websites. Legitimate and lawful websites like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have nothing to worry about under this bill.”
What Next?
It’s unlikely that the government would actually shut down YouTube or Tumblr if SOPA/PIPA were to pass. But the implications of an Internet-censoring form of legislation are alarming enough to culminate into January 18th’s blackout. Because of that protest, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) decided to postpone Tuesday’s vote on the PROTECT IP Act, which was seen as a huge win for the anti-SOPA movement. Originally scheduled for Tuesday, January 24th, the postponement suggests a serious reconsideration of SOPA/PIPA in favor of something significantly less Orwellian.
The next installment of the SOPA/PIPA saga has yet to be revealed. In the meantime, an alternative anti-piracy act, called OPEN, has recently been presented to Congress. OPEN is designed to strengthen intellectual property rights while preserving an open and free Internet; the act has garnered support from Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn, among other companies. Learn more at KeepTheWebOpen.com. Time will tell whether OPEN is the answer to SOPA/PIPA. What are your thoughts? Would SOPA/PIPA really result in Internet censorship? Is OPEN the next best thing? Let us know in the comments!