SOPA’s defeat not the end
ERIC BATKE
On Jan. 18, the denizens of the Internet rallied around websites such as Wikipedia, Google and Reddit to voice their disapproval over anti-piracy bills making their way through the House and Senate. The bills (Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Act, respectively) were designed to combat the piracy of intellectual property on the Internet, but contained vague and broad-sweeping measures that could have had a very negative impact on web innovation. These bills would have threatened the infrastructure of the Internet as we know it. Those bills are effectively dead in the water, and everyone who took the time to write or call their Congressmen deserves a round of applause.
However, now is not the time for Internet users to rest on their laurels, for there exists a far greater threat to the Internet you know and love.
For the past three years, 39 countries, including the United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Australia and the European Union have been quietly negotiating a trade agreement called the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). The negotiators are not elected by the public, and both the negotiations and the trade agreement itself are subject to no democratic processes.
The core of the agreement is based around holding Internet service providers (ISPs) legally responsible for any activity in which their users may engage. This would force ISPs to act as a copyright police force, and could lead to rampant censorship of any website that the government deems out of line. I understand that online piracy is a huge problem, but ACTA seeks to institute provisions very similar to those of SOPA/PIPA without running it through any democratically elected representation.
ACTA’s method of punishment is extremely broad and chillingly vague. The architects of the agreement have lumped together various infringements and methods of enforcement that will lead to a de facto presumption of guilt. It places manufacturers of dangerous counterfeit products and medicine on the same level as innovative websites and non-profits that base themselves on freedom of expression and provide crucial access to knowledge and information.
The agreement also makes it possible for pharmaceutical corporations to halt the manufacture of generic drugs before they reach shelves. They could halt production of certain seeds for crops. This power remains in the agreement for the purpose of defending patents.
ACTA is just the latest action in the disturbing trend that has been developing in our government and other countries across the world. I refuse to have my freedoms of speech and expression infringed upon by shadowy people who do not represent me or anyone else in this nation. The only way to defeat an international agreement of this magnitude is with widespread knowledge and opposition. The very concept of net neutrality is at stake, and the idea of ACTA being passed behind closed doors without opposition is indeed a scary one.