I contacted my Rep. in Congress a few weeks ago and got this in response:
"Thank you for contacting my office regarding intellectual and property online piracy. I appreciate your views and having the benefit of your opinion.
H.R. 3261, the Stop Online Piracy Act, introduced by Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX), and a related senate bill, S. 968, the PROTECT IP Act, introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), seek to protect intellectual property and combat commerce in counterfeit goods on the Internet. Specifically, the Stop Online Piracy Act would make it a federal crime to illegally stream copyrighted content and would significantly expand the government's authority to shutter websites that provide access to pirated or counterfeit content. H.R. 3261 is currently being considered by the House Committee on Judiciary.
I support the goal of this legislation?to protect intellectual property and combat commerce in counterfeit goods?and I support a targeted approach that does not entangle legitimate websites, but I am concerned that H.R. 3261 is written too broadly and may have an adverse affect on free speech and internet innovation. The legislation is a major departure from the current "notice and take-down" system that provided protection from liability for internet service providers and websites that expeditiously remove infringing materials from their networks, and some critics of the legislation argue that new regulations may result in uncertainty that could disrupt Internet innovation and growth.
It is critical that the Internet remain a viable avenue for American innovation and commerce, and we cannot ignore those individuals and rogue websites that seek to profit off of the innovation of others. However, we must be sure not to overreach in our attempt to curtail this activity when a more targeted approach may be more effective. I will keep your thoughtful views in mind as Congress continues to consider this important issue.
Thank you again for taking the time to be in touch. Please do not hesitate to contact my office in the future with questions or concerns."
My worry is that in support of the 'Idea' too many will forget the 'Risks'. Techdirt has pointed them out over and over again and nothing I've heard from Congress is making me feel like this is really slowing down.
I completely agree with this. Comcast has tried to bundle me with land-line phone service too and a firm "I have zero interest" quickly ends that phone call.
I have the misfortune of Comcast being the only option for me to get quality Internet. When I first moved into my place I let them sell me their crazy packaged deal. About a year later I called them up, asked how much each of the channel packages cost, and each time they gave me a number I said 'get rid of it'. I did this right down to the bare minimum of channels you can get. At which point they said if I dropped the last bit of channels my internet cost would go up. So I kept them. I called them about 6 months later to drop them again because my bill was still higher than I liked, turns out they were mis-billing me. Either way I completely agree with the article I find no value in having to spend $120 a month to get the 2-3 things I actually would want to watch. With the prevalence of on demand even through their own service it is insulting to one's intelligence when they claim that they can't do a la carte service and that by packaging you get the best deal. I would pay to get 5 channels I wanted plus Live sports for my teams games. That would be a service I would be interested in. But until then I can wait for shows on Netflix or DVD or other and use all my saved money to buy tickets and see a few games in person instead.
I have a purchased copy of the Hurt Locker in my living room right now, borrowed from my parents. I don't particularly care to see it now. I too will be encouraging I know not to support him or his company in any way shape or form. This is all thanks to his juvenile reaction which annoys me far greater than his idiotic corporate tactics.
Techdirt has not posted any stories submitted by dtc357.
My Congress Member's Response
I contacted my Rep. in Congress a few weeks ago and got this in response:
"Thank you for contacting my office regarding intellectual and property online piracy. I appreciate your views and having the benefit of your opinion.
H.R. 3261, the Stop Online Piracy Act, introduced by Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX), and a related senate bill, S. 968, the PROTECT IP Act, introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), seek to protect intellectual property and combat commerce in counterfeit goods on the Internet. Specifically, the Stop Online Piracy Act would make it a federal crime to illegally stream copyrighted content and would significantly expand the government's authority to shutter websites that provide access to pirated or counterfeit content. H.R. 3261 is currently being considered by the House Committee on Judiciary.
I support the goal of this legislation?to protect intellectual property and combat commerce in counterfeit goods?and I support a targeted approach that does not entangle legitimate websites, but I am concerned that H.R. 3261 is written too broadly and may have an adverse affect on free speech and internet innovation. The legislation is a major departure from the current "notice and take-down" system that provided protection from liability for internet service providers and websites that expeditiously remove infringing materials from their networks, and some critics of the legislation argue that new regulations may result in uncertainty that could disrupt Internet innovation and growth.
It is critical that the Internet remain a viable avenue for American innovation and commerce, and we cannot ignore those individuals and rogue websites that seek to profit off of the innovation of others. However, we must be sure not to overreach in our attempt to curtail this activity when a more targeted approach may be more effective. I will keep your thoughtful views in mind as Congress continues to consider this important issue.
Thank you again for taking the time to be in touch. Please do not hesitate to contact my office in the future with questions or concerns."
My worry is that in support of the 'Idea' too many will forget the 'Risks'. Techdirt has pointed them out over and over again and nothing I've heard from Congress is making me feel like this is really slowing down.
Re: Let's be honest here....
"TV what a cell phone is to a land line.."
I completely agree with this. Comcast has tried to bundle me with land-line phone service too and a firm "I have zero interest" quickly ends that phone call.
I've "cut the cord" twice
I have the misfortune of Comcast being the only option for me to get quality Internet. When I first moved into my place I let them sell me their crazy packaged deal. About a year later I called them up, asked how much each of the channel packages cost, and each time they gave me a number I said 'get rid of it'. I did this right down to the bare minimum of channels you can get. At which point they said if I dropped the last bit of channels my internet cost would go up. So I kept them. I called them about 6 months later to drop them again because my bill was still higher than I liked, turns out they were mis-billing me. Either way I completely agree with the article I find no value in having to spend $120 a month to get the 2-3 things I actually would want to watch. With the prevalence of on demand even through their own service it is insulting to one's intelligence when they claim that they can't do a la carte service and that by packaging you get the best deal. I would pay to get 5 channels I wanted plus Live sports for my teams games. That would be a service I would be interested in. But until then I can wait for shows on Netflix or DVD or other and use all my saved money to buy tickets and see a few games in person instead.
I'll boycott to that
I have a purchased copy of the Hurt Locker in my living room right now, borrowed from my parents. I don't particularly care to see it now. I too will be encouraging I know not to support him or his company in any way shape or form. This is all thanks to his juvenile reaction which annoys me far greater than his idiotic corporate tactics.