Xanthippa's Chamberpot

SOPA may appear to be officially dead, but that does not mean that the lobbyists will not try to convince legislators to sneak SOPA-style provisions into other legislation:  whether as bits attached to other bills in the US, or trying to incorporate aspects of it into laws of other countries.  We must remail vigilant!

That is exactly the message from Michael Geist:

‘While SOPA may be dead (for now) in the U.S., lobby groups are likely to intensify their efforts to export SOPA-like rules to other countries. With Bill C-11 back on the legislative agenda at the end of the month, Canada will be a prime target for SOPA style rules. In fact, a close review of the unpublished submissions to the Bill C-32 legislative committee reveals that several groups have laid the groundwork to add SOPA-like rules into Bill C-11, including blocking websites and expanding the “enabler provision”to target a wider range of websites. ‘

…

‘The music industry is unsurprisingly leading the way, demanding a series of changes that would make Bill C-11 look much more like SOPA. ‘

…

‘Several lobby groups also want language similar to that found in the infamous Section 103 of SOPA. That provision, which spoke of sites “primarily designed or operated for the purpose of…offering goods or services in a manner that engages in, enables, or facilitates” infringement, raised fears that it could be used to shut down mainstream sites such as YouTube.’

This is something we must stay on top of!