01.19.12

To the honorable Senators Boxer and Feinstein, and Minority Leader Pelosi,

I am writing to voice my strong opposition to the Stop Online Piracy Act (HR 3261) and PROTECT IP Act (SR 968). These bills have the power to fundamentally change the freedoms and landscape of the Internet while creating a significant burden for lawful content creators and those who legally facilitate open communication. As such, they stifle innovation, entrepreneurship, and job growth. Any claim that the bills promote job growth or innovation as currently written is disingenuous at best.

DMCA take down requests solve many of the same problems, though they are often abused by large corporations with no penalty. SOPA and PIPA run roughshod over existing laws that preserve due process and democracy, replacing them with laws that bear a striking resemblance to laws and policies of China and other freedom stifling countries; actions our government has rightfully opposed.

Rather than undermining functioning laws like the DCMA and creating draconian laws that exclusively favor large companies and content providers, any new legislation must be authored by balancing a number of key principals that should be the cornerstone of our legislative process:

• The law must precisely define the issues, both technical and legal. The current bill is vague in some places where the utmost clarity is key to its proper execution. Many of the technical statements in the bill are untrue or uninformed. It’s clear the authors have very little understanding of the technical operation of the Internet.

• Any legislation must define penalties for abuse by both Copyright and IP violators as well as penalties for Copyright and IP owners who make false requests in bad faith. Penalties for filing false claims seem nonexistent, though they waste government resources and can adversely effect entrepreneurs and smaller businesses, up to and including putting them out of business through no fault of their own. Those who misuse the law should be held as accountable as those who break it.

• The bill’s text and debate should include input from technically minded people across a wide spectrum: entrepreneurs, system administrators, network engineers, the original architects of the Internet, and lawful Internet users. The current bill was written by and is lobbied for by a select group of special interests and does not address the nuances of a global network.

• This law should be freely and transparently debated in a way that gives all people a voice. The current hearings include a few select companies in the opposition which were hand picked by sponsors and proponents on The Hill. We have yet to hear from entrepreneurs or potential investors about how this impacts their businesses. No doubt a number of entrepreneurs and venture capitalists are at a stand still until this bills are either dropped or appropriately rewritten. Even before becoming law, these bills are keeping talented innovators out if work, unable to create jobs every day until they can invest and invent with a clear understanding of the legal landscape.

These bills underscore the power of lobbyists and large content and IP holders. They have written the bill and earnestly worked to assure your votes. Members of congress can not be expected to fully understand the nature of the Internet, both technically, commercially, and it’s personal use by law abiding Americans. You are very busy and must balance your time studying a wide variety of issues, including economics, constitutional law, political landscapes, international matters, and many other important things. The notion that paid lobbyists will fully educate you about the intricacies of this system and the bills’ true impact is laughable. Those who have your ear are funded by large coffers to ensure you understand things from a perspective that aligns with their interests.

I encourage you to meet with constituents in your area who can provide a counterbalance to the one sided view thats drowning your office with distortion. You are fortunate to live in Silicon Valley, the most knowledgeable people are in your backyard.

I do not download content illegally, nor do I support or visit sites that promote it. Even still I worry for the freedom that is so fundamental to the Internet. I wholeheartedly support legislation that protects copyright and intellectual property holders, but SOPA and PIPA go far beyond their stated goal and are overly broad while being technically vague and uninformed. The bills as written today will allow powerful companies to overstep their bounds in ways that we can’t even imagine.

I urge you to not only to oppose these bills, but to actively work on legislation that meets the stated goal of protecting content and intellectual property owners with fair, technically sound, and concise language with penalties for both offenders and owners who act in bad faith.

Sincerely, Trevor A Copland

CC:
Senate Majority Leader Harry Ried
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell
Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner