SOPA: “a baby-step towards something worse”

Submitted by Matthew on 25 January, 2012 - 1:12

The passage of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act (PIPA) through the US Congress has been temporarily postponed.

The bills would give the US government wide-ranging powers to act against web-based copyright-infringement. One of SOPA’s major effects would be to introduce prison sentences of up to five years for the streaming of copyrighted material. Websites containing user-uploaded content could find themselves liable for the actions of their users, something which, in the words of liberal commentator Jon Stewart, would “break the internet”.

The bill’s most high profile corporate backers have been from the film, music and pharmaceutical industries (the latter are concerned about the use of the internet to import cheaper prescription drugs from Canada). Because SOPA would allow the US Justice Department to seek court orders against websites based in other countries, there is concern that it could precipitate a protectionist “trade war” in the field of intellectual property. Various bodies of the European Union have already condemned the bill.

The AFL-CIO and American unions representing workers in the “creative industries” have expressed their support for the legislation, on this protectionist basis. A joint union statement released last year said: “Without proactive measures like the Stop Online Piracy Act, rogues sites will continue to siphon away wages and benefits from members of the creative community.”

But some union members have put together a petition calling for their unions to oppose the act. One member of the Screen Actors’ Guild says: “I’m a SAG member saying that unions have no business supporting legislation that could harm free speech and the free flow of information. The internet has become an important organising tool for anyone speaking out against the status quo, and we can’t pretend that this bill isn’t a baby-step towards something far worse.”

Websites opposed to the bill, including Wikipedia, staged an internet “strike”, taking themselves down for a day on 18 January. The next day, the US Justice Department took down file-sharing site Megaupload, in what it claimed was an unconnected move. This in turn provoked an attack by the hacker group Anonymous on many US government sites.

The internet is now a political battleground, but the sides aren’t arrayed along traditional lines. SOPA is supported by Bush-style neo-cons, huge multinationals and much of organised labour. It is opposed by civil liberties groups, Tea Party supporters, and some well known left-liberal artists. The most high-profile political opposition has come from ultra-libertarian right-winger Ron Paul, currently seeking the Republican nomination to challenge Barack Obama in this year’s presidential election.

The SOPA saga mixes up many different issues. Artists need to make a living, but the broad legal definitions in the law raise fears of a Great Firewall being built in the USA and other countries, more likely to stifle creativity and free speech than stifle piracy.

This website uses cookies, you can find out more and set your preferences here.
By continuing to use this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.