sopa

Google, Facebook, Zynga oppose new SOPA copyright bill

Foes of a controversial copyright measure have gained some high-profile allies: Google, Facebook, Twitter, Zynga, and other Web companies have joined the ranks of the bill's opponents.

They sent a letter (PDF) last night to key members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, saying the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, "pose[s] a serious risk to our industry's continued track record of innovation and job creation, as well as to our nation's cybersecurity."

The protest was designed to raise objections in advance of a hearing before the full House Judiciary committee … Read more

Reporters' Roundtable: RIAA defends SOPA in fight over content rights

Today we're discussing what's been called the end of the Internet. And the Great Firewall of America. Or, technically: SOPA, the Stop Online Piracy Act, aka HR 3261, a law now wending its way through the House of Representatives.

This is a very controversial bill that would provide new powers to copyright holders and the government to sue, and take offline, sites that host legally protected content. The content industry says it's required to protect rights holders and their jobs. The technology industry says it will break the Internet and cost high-tech jobs.

To discuss, I have two guests. First, in the studio with me, our commentator Larry Downes, who writes on these topics for CNET and elsewhere. Larry has taught IP and computer property law at UC Berkeley.

And dialing in from the other side of the country, and the debate, is Mitch Glazier, senior executive vice president of the Recording Industry Association of America.

Subscribe: iTunes (MP3)iTunes (320x180)iTunes (640x360)Podcast RSS (MP3)Podcast RSS (320x180)Podcast RSS (640x360)

SOPA: Hollywood's latest effort to turn back time

commentary The introduction late last week by members of the House Judiciary Committee of the "Stop Online Piracy Act," or SOPA, may test a long-standing reluctance by technology companies to take up arms in the legislative battleground.

The bill, introduced as the House version of the Senate's Protect IP Act, solves few of the glaring problems of the Senate bill and introduces many all its own. While Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) may have given in to hyperbole in calling SOPA "the end of the Internet as we know it," there is certainly a great deal … Read more

U.S. government also a villain in piracy act story

Now that we've had a few days to digest the MPAA-backed Stop Online Piracy Act (PDF), can we all finally agree that the MPAA is evil and Hollywood wants the Internet to die? And then can we stop letting them write laws for us?

SOPA is the latest--and perhaps the most brazen--effort in a string of attempts by the MPAA and RIAA to bend the Internet to their corporate will and undermine all kinds of consumer rights. It's a breathtaking piece of work that would give Hollywood and private companies free reign to censor, remove, or prevent the … Read more

Copyright bill controversy grows as rhetoric sharpens

Controversy over a new copyright bill continues to grow in Washington, D.C., with both proponents and detractors signing up new allies and sharpening their rhetoric. Even pop icon Justin Bieber has made an appearance.

The Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, introduced last week in the House of Representatives to the applause of lobbyists for Hollywood and other large content holders, is designed to make allegedly copyright-infringing Web sites, sometimes called "rogue" Web sites, virtually disappear from the Internet.

That goes too far and hinders freedom of speech and innovation, the Consumer Electronics Association, NetCoalition, and the … Read more

Rep. Lofgren: Copyright bill is the 'end of the Internet'

Rep. Zoe Lofgren, the California Democrat whose district includes the heart of Silicon Valley, is preparing to lead congressional opposition to the new Stop Online Piracy Act.

The antipiracy legislation, introduced yesterday in the House of Representatives to the applause of lobbyists for Hollywood and other large content holders, is designed to make allegedly copyright-infringing Web sites, sometimes called "rogue" Web sites, virtually disappear from the Internet.

"I'm still reviewing the legislation, but from what I've already read, this would mean the end of the Internet as we know it," Lofgren told CNET.

Lofgren, … Read more