Tech Giants Fight Congressional Anti-Piracy Bill

In what seems a strange set of circumstances, a letter has been sent to congressional leaders by company heads of some of the largest tech companies in the world, expressing their concern over a bill whose purpose is to fight the piracy of software, videos and music. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that leaders for Google, Craigslist, eBay, Twitter, Yahoo and other tech giants, have banded together to write to Congress in hopes of convincing them to vote against a new bill that would allow governmental agencies broad powers in shutting down web sites that are deemed to be violating copyright laws.

The problem is, according to several tech company officials, that the bill goes too far in allowing the government to shut down web sites; something they say, would create an environment not unlike that in certain countries with authoritarian governments that think nothing of shutting down sites that offer content the government doesn't like.

The bill in question is actually two bills; one in the House, and one in the Senate. They differ only slightly and go by different names, but are essentially the same in that they give governmental agencies the right to shut down web sites, including foreign ones, without due process.

Several newspapers, whose editors support what the corporate heads are saying, chose to run the letter in their Wednesday edition, which is in direct contrast to the wishes of many in Hollywood, the music industry, and other organizations such as the Business Software Alliance and the US Chamber of Commerce, one of the most powerful lobbying organizations in the country.

In the letter, the corporate execs note that had the proposed legislation been in affect when they were starting their companies, it's likely they never would have succeeded due to restraints imposed by the government. This they say is proof that such legislation would stymie creativity and slow new economic growth in the computer and software development industry.

The twin bills have been created in congress because of intense lobbying by those that create entertainment material that is easily copied and distributed on the Internet. Currently there are thousands of such sites that allow anyone who visits the site to download whatever someone else has uploaded, which in some, but not all cases, is copyrighted material such as movies, video games and music.

Both houses of Congress are expected to vote on their respective bills sometime this week, and if both pass, differences will be hammered out and then voted on sometime next week. Those opposed to the bill urge people from all across the country to contact their representatives to express their views.