Internet New Zealand believes the 24 hour website blackout in protest against proposed US anti-piracy laws is a good tactic.
The English page of Wikipedia went dark on Wednesday (US time), Thursday (NZ time), except for a paragraph urging users to protest against legislation which the free online encyclopedia says "could fatally damage the free and open Internet".
Both Internet NZ and the Creative Freedom Foundation followed suit by blacking out, while Google blotted out its logo.
The websites have since returned to normal.
The protests were in response to bills designed to curb access and payments to overseas websites that traffic in stolen content or counterfeit goods on the grounds that it could put them in legal peril.
Internet New Zealand chief executive Vikram Kumar says while the blackout is an inconvenience, it gets the message across. "We haven't heard the voice of the common person and are somewhat non-informed," Kumar said.
Kumar wants some balance brought back to the issue and he told TVNZ News at 8 that people need to realise that while it is about US domestic law it will impact on websites in New Zealand and around the world.
"We need an open Internet," he said, adding that there is no evidence Hollywood and the music industry is suffering.
"They need to change their business models and make their products available online."
Kumar says if the current law doesn't pass there will be another at some point because of the huge amount of corporate lobbying.
"It's about protecting their profits rather than moving on."
Although Kumar believes New Zealand won't have any influence, he said it is important for our Government to make it clear that the law could affect our national interest.
The people providing the law will find ways to target rogue websites outside the US, Kumar said and he believes they will find ways around laws that could "break the Internet".
"There will be no stopping it until they get their way."
Piracy angst
The legislation has been a major priority for entertainment companies, publishers, pharmaceutical companies and many industry groups.
They maintain the proposed law is critical to curbing online piracy they say costs them billions of dollars annually.
Internet companies have furiously opposed the legislation and have stepped up lobbying efforts in recent months, arguing it would undermine innovation and free speech rights, compromise the functioning of the Internet, and would be ineffective in stopping piracy.
The bills were seemingly on the fast track for approval by Congress until the White House criticised aspects of it over the weekend.
Facebook and Twitter
Big tech names including Facebook and Twitter declined to participate despite their opposition to the House of Representatives' Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Senate's PROTECT Intellectual Property Act (PIPA). The companies were not prepared to sacrifice a day's worth of revenue and risk the ire of users for a protest whose impact on lawmakers would be hard to gauge.
Google's solution allows the search engine giant to keep revenue attached to its searches, while still highlighting the issue.
"This publicity stunt does a disservice to its users by promoting fear instead of facts," said Lamar Smith, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and a sponsor of SOPA. "Perhaps during the blackout, Internet users can look elsewhere for an accurate definition of online piracy."
Former Senator Chris Dodd, who now chairs the Motion Picture Association of America, labelled the blackout a "gimmick" and called for its supporters to "stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to combat piracy."
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