Controversial online piracy bill gains support

[Avri Doria]

i can agree that this is one possible consequence.
or rather that it is a few possible consequences.

i am already looking to move to hosting in Iceland.

and i have singed petitions as an individual and would sign others.
are there any organizxational petitions going around that NCSG and/or the Constituencies should consider signing?

avri

On 17 Nov 2011, at 10:20, Carlos A. Afonso wrote:

> Consequences: additional stimulus for the creation of alternate roots,
> seeking national TLDs instead of US-controlled gTLDs, running away from
> US-based datacenters, and, for the countries which can, diversion of
> traffic which currently transits through the USA.
> 
> IMHO
> 
> --c.a.
> 
> On 11/17/2011 11:57 AM, DeeDee Halleck wrote:
>> 
>>  SOPA, controversial online piracy bill, gains support as lobbying
>>  intensifies
>> 
>> 
>> (TRUTH LEEM/REUTERS) - Google, Facebook, Yahoo and other Web giants
>> launched a media blitz on Wednesday with full-page newspaper ads urging
>> lawmakers to vote against the proposal.
>> 
>> 
>>      By Cecilia Kang
>>      <http://www.washingtonpost.com/cecilia-kang/2011/02/28/ABFs9eL_page.html>, Wednesday,
>>      November 16, 7:38 PM
>> 
>> Several lawmakers expressed support Wednesday for a controversial bill 
>> <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-tech/post/house-introduces-internet-piracy-bill/2011/10/26/gIQA0f5xJM_blog.html>aimed
>> at curbing online piracy as lobbying 
>> <http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/web-giants-at-odds-with-chamber-of-commerce-over-piracy-bill/2011/11/15/gIQAkY5hPN_story.html>over
>> the issue reached a fever pitch.
>> 
>> In a House Judiciary Committee hearing on a bill proposed by committee
>> Chairman Lamar Smith
>> <http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Lamar_Smith> (R-Tex.), a bipartisan
>> group of lawmakers said new laws are needed to help media outlets,
>> software makers and retailers fight the illegal distribution of movies,
>> songs and software.
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Smith’s Stop Online Piracy Act is aimed at foreign sites dedicated to
>> pirated material, but Web giants such as Google and Facebook and
>> telecommunications firms say his proposal goes too far, making them
>> responsible for shutting down bad actors.
>> 
>> “The problem of rogue Web sites is real, immediate and widespread. It
>> harms all sectors of the economy,” Smith said during the hearing.
>> 
>> Several lawmakers expressed concern that the illegal exchange of
>> copyrighted movies, software and music is draining U.S. media companies
>> and that current laws don’t give law enforcement enough power to stop
>> bad actors.
>> 
>> And some questioned the motives of Web giants fighting the legislation.
>> 
>> Opposition is “really about the bottom line,” said Rep. Mel Watt
>> <http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Mel_Watt> (D-N.C.). “Sites that
>> specialize in stolen goods attract lots of users and lots of ads.”
>> 
>> Supporters and critics
>> <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-tech/post/facebook-google-join-to-fight-internet-privacy-legislation/2011/11/15/gIQAELOlON_blog.html> of
>> the measure ramped up their lobbying efforts ahead of the hearing.
>> 
>> Google, Facebook, Yahoo and other Web giants launched a media blitz on
>> Wednesday with full-page newspaper ads urging lawmakers to vote against
>> the proposal. Vague language in the bill would force them to shut down
>> the domain names of infringing sites and would lead to lawsuits, they
>> said. Telecommunications firms, including Verizon Communications,
>> complained that the bill would force them to stop Internet traffic that
>> contained illegal content.
>> 
>> Supporters of the legislation, ranging from Hollywood studios to
>> pharmaceutical companies, argued during the hearing that they are losing
>> an estimated $135 billion a year in pirated material.
>> 
>> “Fundamentally, this is about jobs,” said Michael O’Leary, who
>> represented the Motion Picture Association of America at the hearing. He
>> argued that not just actors and directors are affected; piracy also has
>> a ripple effect on thousands of businesses that are associated with the
>> movie business.
>> 
>> Smith has said he hopes to move his legislation to markup before the end
>> of the year. A similar Senate bill passed the Judiciary Committee in
>> September.
>> 
>> The House proposal came about suddenly, critics say, and without
>> consultation from high-tech and telecommunications firms.
>> 
>> “Inexplicably, and almost overnight, SOPA has morphed into a full-on
>> assault against lawful U.S. Internet companies,” said Markham C.
>> Erickson, executive director of NetCoalition, a group representing Web
>> firms and public interest groups opposed to the law. “This makes no
>> sense to us, nor will it to the millions of Internet users who depend on
>> it for communications, commerce and democracy.”
>> 
>> A Verizon executive said in an interview Wednesday that the legislation
>> puts too much of the burden on Internet service providers to create new
>> technologies to monitor and stop illegal consumer use of Web content.
>> 
>> “We have a number of concerns with the bill,” said the executive, who
>> spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of
>> the legislative push. “And we have been shut out of the process in
>> writing this, even though it is very technical and requires us to use a
>> range of technically difficult things to enforce this legislation.”
>> 
>> -- 
>> http://www.deepdishwavesofchange.org
>> 
>>