The vote for the Stop Online Piracy Act has been delayed until 2012. The bill is aimed at stopping copyright infringement, but its opponents argue that SOPA implies Internet censorship, which will cripple the Internet and will threaten whistle-blowing and free speech in general.
Stop Online Piracy Act is expected to overturn Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) process requiring copyright owners to submit notices of infringement to websites and ask for the infringing material to be taken down. SOPA grants private companies the ability to de-fund websites they allege to be trafficking in unauthorized copyright and trademark goods. Rights holders may ask judges to order ad networks and banks to stop doing business with a site dedicated to infringing activities. The legislation also gives legal immunity to financial institutions and ad networks that choose to boycott the rogue sites even without having been ordered to do so.
The legislation has broad support from organizations that rely on copyright, including Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, Dell, Intel; with Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter, Mozilla, eBay, Linkedh, AOL and Zynga opposing it and arguing that the bill could have unintended consequences for the Internet.
Evegny Yushuk, who is a member of the Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals, explains the core of the discussion.
"This may lead to a serious abuse, because at present courts are considering data provided by both sides. Their verdict is based on the correct interpretation of the law. And the new bill allows one-sided acting. It opens the way for various provocations. It gives the opportunity to provoke the situation. Then it is possible to cite it and demand whatever they want."
Besides, users fear the authorities trying to violate the freedom online by implementing SOPA to ban opposition sites. The control of the web on the part of the authorities is known in some countries. But if the bill is voted for in the US, such practices will become common, Alexander Vlasov, an information security expert, believes.
"We have not seen this enthusiasm to block the Internet or some sites in the US so far. On the other hand, it is quite a widespread trend. China has been regulating the Internet and blocking websites on political considerations. But the US, which has been trying to defend freedom online, may let the genie out of the bottle. The Internet is strangely constructed. It is enough to start regulating or banning anything, and the online freedom is over."
Alexander Vlasov says attempts by the US authorities to control the Internet could be explained by threats comparable to those of the notorious WikiLeaks website.
"The US has sustained considerable reputation damage after WikiLeaks revealed many important files. And now, I think, some circles in the country want to curb uncontrolled circulation of information."
At the same time experts believe that even if SOPA is passed, it will be passed with considerable changes. Even though it will be accompanied by several other bills, for instance, Protect IP act, that is about to be discussed in the US Congress one of these days. But, still, all of these bills will not be that hard-hitting and controversial, as the present version of the SOPA. Yet in the end they are bound to become an efficient means of control.
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