Companies and Lobbyists on Both Sides of SOPA

In mid-November, a number of corporations joined in the debate and lobbying over the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA, H.R. 3261; http://1.usa.gov/rrzNee), a new piece of legislation introduced in October by House Judiciary Committee chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) that is being considered by that committee. The legislation is designed to “[t]o promote prosperity, creativity, entrepreneurship, and innovation by combating the theft of U.S. property, and for other purposes,” according to its preamble. (The bill is a companion to the Senate's “Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act (Protect IP),” S.968, introduced in May by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT).) Protect IP passed the Senate Judiciary Committee but was put on hold by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) because, he said in a press release on his website, while he “agree[s] with the goal of the legislation, to protect intellectual property and combat commerce in counterfeit goods,” he is ” not willing to muzzle speech and stifle innovation and economic growth to achieve this objective.” http://1.usa.gov/mLGLYK.