DO NOT SUPPORT PIPA & SOPA.
SUPPORT The OPEN Act: The Online Protection & Enforcement of Digital Trade Act.
For more than 80 years, the International Trade Commission (ITC) has:
- addressed unfair trade practices & infringement of Copyright & Trademarks;
- provided legal redress that is available & applicable specifically to each case; &
- reduced the potential for conflicting rulings & inconsistent precedents.
The ITC already employs a transparent process that gives parties the chance to be heard. The ITC’s process & work is highly regarded as independent & free from political influence & it has a well-recognized expertise in intellectual property & trade law that could be expanded to the import of digital goods.
The ITC already employs safeguards to ensure that rights-holders do not abuse their right to request a Commission investigation & the Commission may, itself, initiate investigations. Keeping the ITC in charge of determining whether unfair imports–like those that violate intellectual property rights–would ensure consistent enforcement of intellectual property rights & trade law & enable holders of intellectual property to petition the ITC to launch an investigation into whether a foreign website’s only real purpose is to engage in infringement of US copyrights & trademarks.
If an ITC investigation finds that a foreign-registered website is “primarily” & “willfully” infringing on the IP rights of a US rights holder, the Commission would issue a cease & desist order that would compel payment processors (like Visa & Paypal) & online advertising providers to cease doing business with the foreign site in question.
The Online Protection & Enforcement of Digital Trade Act (The Open Act) approaches online infringement as an international trade issue.
The Open Act would enable holders of intellectual property to petition the ITC to launch an investigation into whether a foreign website’s only real purpose is to engage in infringement of U.S. copyrights and trademarks. While complex and difficult issues would take time to resolve, investigations into simple and obvious cases, like the “worst-of-the-worst foreign rougue websites,” could be handled in a matter of days. In either case, however, the process would create a transparent and adversarial system in which all parties–including interested parties concerned with issues such as free speech-would have a chance to be heard. Text taken from http://www.keepthewebopen.com/assets/pdfs/faqs.pdf.
Informative Links:
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