House Quietly Reintroduces a Piece of SOPA

BY ADI KAMDAR

Even after millions rallied against the passage of SOPA/PIPA, the House is still quietly trying to pass a related bill that would give the entertainment industry more permanent, government-funded spokespeople. The Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet Subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee recently held a hearing on Lamar Smith's IP Attaché Act (PDF), a bill that increases intellectual property policing around the world. The Act would create an Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property, as well as broaden the use of IP attachés in particular U.S. embassies. (The attachés were notably present in Sec. 205 of SOPA--which was also introduced by Smith.)

The major issue with this bill--and all similar bills--is that the commissioning of people in the executive branch who are solely dedicated to "intellectual property enforcement" caters to Big Content. The IP attachés are charged with "reducing intellectual property infringement" and "advancing intellectual property rights" around the world, but not to critically engage IP complexities and limitations. From our perspective, this bill is nothing more than the government giving Hollywood traveling foot soldiers.

The presence of people with such a narrow cause as "intellectual property enforcement" fosters a single perspective in the federal government. In an environment where the deep-pocketed copyright lobby is pushing through favorable legislation on both a domestic and international level, this is the last thing we need. As Techdirt and Public Knowledge rightly state: trying to squeeze bits of SOPA past the people--the same people who rejected the bill earlier this year--is an awful idea. Big Content and sympathetic congressmen may think we've stopped watching their actions in Washington, but let's prove them wrong by remaining vigilant about these bad bills.

Attached Documents

SMITTX_084_xml.pdf

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Nickel's2bits

Posted: Jul 12 2012, 1:08 PM

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97104

Oooo! Oooo! I thought Republicans hated czars! And here they are, creating another one!

Coyne Tibbets

Posted: Jul 14 2012, 5:20 PM

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97104

The entertainment companies are bound and determined to have everything in SOPA. Didn't just think they were going to give up did y'all?

They won't stop until people are being arrested for humming music to themselves; and for playing music where other people can hear.

Chris

Posted: Jul 14 2012, 6:00 PM

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You're not your music Coyne, why do you think them using government force to make you pay for humming their music is wrong? Society agreed intellectual property is wonderful and everyone is entitled to own creative works, they also agreed no one can copy or modify them and build on them without paying a ransom, err, "royalty." You're not accepting the fact government is needed to coerce it's members for their own good, society agreed on it, if you don't like it you're free to leave.

/lulz

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