Concerned about a possible revival of onerous SOPA regulations, a handful of Silicon Valley s biggest tech companies have filed a friend-of-the-court brief opposing an anti-piracy lawsuit brought by the MPAA.
Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter and Tumblr are banding together to fight the breathtakingly broad efforts six Hollywood movie studios are seeking to shut down websites run by MovieTube, which are allegedly used to illegally stream movies. As part of their lawsuit, the MPAA, which is handling the suit for the studios, is seeking an injunction against third-party Internet providers to block access and services to the sites.
While not condoning MovieTube s actions, it s that third-party bit that has tech companies in an uproar.
It is no exaggeration to say that such an injunction would bind the entire Internet, their brief argues. Plaintiffs effort to bind the entire Internet to a sweeping preliminary injunction is impermissible. It violates basic principles of due process … [and] ignores the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which specifically limits the injunctive relief that can be imposed on online service providers in copyright cases.
The tech firms argue that such an order would effectively serve as a backdoor to enforce penalties that were already rejected by Congress. Plaintiffs now appear to be repackaging the excesses of SOPA, they write in the brief.
SOPA, the Stop Online Piracy Act, was defeated in Congress in 2012 after a huge outcry from tech companies and tech-savvy citizens. Among other things, the bill would have required Internet providers, ad networks and search engines to block access to sites that were blacklisted for infringing copyrights. The companies claim — then and now — that they are not responsible for what users do on their systems, comparing their sites and Internet services to the postal service, which they argue can t be responsible for every letter sent.
Concerns about a SOPA revival may be well-founded. Just last month, emails were revealed that outlined a dirty-tricks campaign between the MPAA and Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood to force Google to shutter illegal sites.
The tech companies are asking the court to strike all language regarding the objectionable third-party provisions, and respectfully request that the Court issue an order that would provide guidance to future courts faced with improper requests for injunctions against nonparty Internet intermediaries.
A hearing on the matter is expected to be held next week.
At top: The famous Hollywood sign is visible on Mount Lee looking over downtown Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)
