Innovation Policy Post

SOPA has not been in the news recently.  It is already starting to seem to some like a piece of Internet history, and in fact was recently a Jeopardy question, tweeted yesterday by Rep. Darrell Issa: “On Jan. 18, 2012 some popular websites went dark in protest of SOPA, a bill to ‘stop online’ this type of theft”  

“What is ‘piracy,’ Alex?” [JPG]

Certain industries who prioritize controlling their content expend considerable amounts of time and money on lobbying for legislation, such as SOPA and PIPA.  However, the RIAA, one of the most vocal supporters, allegedly conceded in a recently leaked report that the SOPA/PIPA “legislation [was] not likely to have been effective tool for music.”  So not only is there uncertainty as to the extent of the problem, given the many opportunities for online commerce, but there is apparently uncertainty by the RIAA itself as to the success of that legislative fix.

Two members of Congress have introduced legislation to help innovators combat patent trolls.  HR 6245, co-authored by Congressmen Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., and Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, would allow tech companies to recover litigation costs for nuisance lawsuits where the plaintiff made legal claims that had little chance of succeeding.

From July 16th to 25th, the world’s copyright decision-makers met, as they do twice each year, at the World Intellectual Property Organization (“WIPO”) in Geneva. 

Are you sleeping yet?

It sounds dull - and these meetings can be - but they may prove to be the key to ensuring that the worldwide copyright system’s legal architecture can remain relevant in the digital age. The result of the work going on in Geneva, which will culminate in important international agreements in the next couple of years, will have ramifications far beyond the conference rooms in which they take place.