Anti-SOPA Blackout, 18/1/12. [New: Megaupload taken down]

[Shaun]

It’s on — at least partially: Reddit has announced that it will go dark for 12 hours to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales has said that he hopes to coordinate with the site so that Wikipedia does the same. Will other sites join in? Should we prepare for the Great Internet Strike of 2012?

Writing that it’s “not taking this action lightly,” Reddit announced on Tuesday that it will black out its site on Jan. 18 for 12 hours, starting at 8 a.m. E.T. During that period, the site’s content will be replaced with “a simple message about how the PIPA/SOPA legislation would shut down sites like reddit, link to resources to learn more, and suggest ways to take action.” The company will also run a live video stream of that day’s House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing on Internet security, intellectual property and economic growth.

(MORE: The Coolest Smartphones of CES 2012)

On the site’s blog, the Reddit team admitted that “we’re as addicted to reddit as the rest of you,” but also explained that “we wouldn’t do this if we didn’t believe this legislation and the forces behind it were a serious threat to reddit and the Internet as we know it. Blacking out reddit is a hard choice, but we feel focusing on a day of action is the best way we can amplify the voice of the community.” The company says support for a blackout isn’t unanimous among the Reddit community, and it is asking for input as it decides what to do next.

Without unanimous support among Reddit’s community, it will be interesting to see how things go for Wikipedia if that site follows suit. Wales writes, “It would be great if we could act quickly to coordinate with Reddit,” though he adds that the community needs a “thumbs up/thumbs down vote” on whether to participate, and “we don’t have the luxury of time that we usually have, in terms of negotiating with each other for weeks about what’s exactly the best possible thing to do.” I suspect the ratio of those in favor of a blackout to those opposed would be greater for a more activist site like Reddit than one that’s more mainstream (and let’s be honest, passive) like Wikipedia.

(MORE: 12 Unique Ultrabooks and Tablets You Should Know About)

I appreciate that Reddit’s announcement factored in the importance of educating would-be visitors to the site about why it decided to go dark, what SOPA is and why it’s so important. I can only assume Wikipedia would do the same, should the community decide to go dark on the same day. After all, protests work only when people understand why they’re happening.

That said, now that we have a date for a potential shutdown, the question becomes, Who else will join in? Google, Twitter and Facebook have all been rumored as contenders, in part because of comments made by NetCoalition’s Markham Erickson. (When I asked, Google and Twitter declined to comment on their support for an Internet blackout.) But with a strike looming and despite attempts to push the issue onto agendas, support for this kind of action may be shifting in favor of alternative methods. Finding other ways to protest may be ineluctable — after all, we’re talking about the Internet’s most popular sites going dark for 24 hours.

Sure, there may be some disappointment that we’re not days from Temporary Internet Apocalypse to Prove a Point, but I suspect there’s relief as well. The idea of a multipronged attack on pro-SOPA arguments — including different flavors of activism and discussion — seems like the more mature response on the part of tech companies (which, after all, may not agree on what’s wrong with SOPA as it stands). Let Wikipedia close for the day and generate headlines, while others like Google and Facebook pursue alternative forms of protest that engage their respective audiences. In the end, the more people paying attention, the better.

Red 5 Studios says it will shut down its website, community space and Firefall beta for 24 hours on January 18. It's also boycotting E3.

While the games industry's response to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect IP Act (PIPA) has been relatively muted so far, Firefall developer Red 5 Studios has announced its intention to completely shut down its website, community site and Firefall beta on January 18 as a protest against the controversial legislation. It has also cancelled its booth at E3 to protest the continued support given to SOPA by the event's organizers, the Electronic Software Association (ESA).

Perhaps the most popular of these are the Cheezburger sites, which were made famous for their help in popularizing the LOLCats meme. The public was informed of this decision via Ben Huh’s Twitter:

More are expected to join.

[Smithy]

y'all better get your homework done on tuesday

[Niall]

Good. It's awesome to see these sites/companies standing up to that ridiculous legislation.

[lily.]

I'd like to see the big boys [google,twitter,facebook,tumblr] doing this too. It'd be more effective.

[Me. I Am Salman]

TiBB should join if they are high on morals

[Maia]

I hope Facebook blacks out...




...forever

[Smithy]

http://26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxz08cPuuV1qcy16eo1_500.jpg

oh my god imgur :bawling:

[King Gizzard]

oh my god elephant talk wiki!!!! no!!

[Shaun]

pretty lame of twitter to do it but only with twitpic

[Ninastar]

i don't understand, what will it do and why?

[King Gizzard]

pretty lame of twitter to do it but only with twitpic

is it ran by twitter? :suspect: They have their own photo option thing now

[Shaun]

The protest is meant to be some kind of "well this is what the internet will really be like" gesture - since if SOPA is legislated businesses and production companies will have the power to shut down or censor websites who're accused of filesharing.

Pretty much everywhere has had someone share downloads or torrents, it's ridiculous

[Samuel.]

And just generally raising awareness of SOPA and all it's evilness I'd imagine. No one on the interwebs would want to see the act passed, fortunately it doesn't look like it will anyway anymore.

[Fetch The Bolt Cutters]

google? D:

like actual google?

[Smithy]

No scott fake google

[Fetch The Bolt Cutters]

so i will have to use bing or something

[Glenn.]

Is this happening tomorrow then? Is Google shutting down for 12hrs?

[King Gizzard]

I guess this starts at 5am or 7am? :suspect:

[Mystic Mock]

I can't believe America is going against what they stand for,people should not be censored on the internet (unless they are creating viruses) America are acting no better than some of the Middle East countries.

[Shaun]

8am I think

[Shaun]

oh no, 7

[King Gizzard]

Bollocks I'm not staying up for that

[Ramsay]

No Google or Wikipedia tomorrow?..the world is ****ed

[King Gizzard]

Wonder what will be in it's place

It better be lionel richie or something

[King Gizzard]

*types something into the search bar*


''NO!''

[Locke.]

Says at the top of the wiki page it is happening in less than 2 hours

[King Gizzard]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/technology/how-to-get-around-wikipedias-24-hour-blackout-protest/story-fn7celvh-1226247396611

[Locke.]

Wiki is down

Imagine a World
Without Free Knowledge
For over a decade, we have spent millions of hours building the largest encyclopedia in human history. Right now, the U.S. Congress is considering legislation that could fatally damage the free and open internet. For 24 hours, to raise awareness, we are blacking out Wikipedia.

[Locke.]

If you press escape before the page fully loads and black outs, you can still view the page :joker:

[Shaun]

24 hours :bawling:

[arista]

Shaun

Its not so bad,
And these New Copyright Laws Need to be Hammered In.

Jobs are at Risk
with Every illegal Download - Not that People Like You Care

[arista]

Wiki is down

Imagine a World
Without Free Knowledge
For over a decade, we have spent millions of hours building the largest encyclopedia in human history. Right now, the U.S. Congress is considering legislation that could fatally damage the free and open internet. For 24 hours, to raise awareness, we are blacking out Wikipedia.


Yes I can.


Thats why Google will do a better one.




Sign Of The Times

[Shaun]

Oh arista. You talk so much crap. :love:

[arista]

Oh arista. You talk so much crap. :love:



Shaun honey
it still works SkyNewsHD just told everyone how to Hash tag in

[Stu]

Oh no I'm thick again :(.

[Liberty4eva]

I can't believe America is going against what they stand for,people should not be censored on the internet (unless they are creating viruses) America are acting no better than some of the Middle East countries.

Thomas Jefferson once said the price of freedom is eternal vigilance so here's hoping this raises a lot more vigilance.

[Marc]

I have an exam tomorrow :bored:

[Benjamin]

The Pub quiz should have been today, nobody can cheat. :laugh:

[MTVN]

You can still use Wikipedia if you just use the mobile version of the site, change the url to m.wikipedia.org

[Marc]

Or when wikipedia loads, for the few seconds that it actually shows up before that message comes up just press Esc

[MTVN]

My way is better

[MTVN]

I thought Google was doing this :suspect:

[King Gizzard]

I'm that sad I quickly print screened something before it switched to the blackout screen within a second

google is still working :suspect:

[King Gizzard]

or basically was marc and matthew just said

[arista]

I thought Google was doing this :suspect:


No they do not need to
Thery are our Future

[Marc]

google isn't doing it Nathan :laugh:

[King Gizzard]

.

http://26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxz08cPuuV1qcy16eo1_500.jpg

oh my god imgur :bawling:

[Marc]

well it's working todayyyy

[King Gizzard]

I wonder how many shootings have taken place now minecraft is down

[Marc]

Huuuh?

[lostalex]

I'm conflicted about this. I can see both sides. I definitely support internet freedom, but also i support the American economy, and billions of dollars are being stolen from the American economy (especially California) by pirated movies and TV shows and Music. Entertainment is one of America's biggest exports, and we should be paid for the product we make.

[King Gizzard]

''Under SOPA, you could get 5 years for uploading a Michael Jackson song, one year more than the doctor who killed him.''

[King Gizzard]

:joker: They didn't even shut, it's as easy as pressing ESC and the blackout screen goes away

[lostalex]

I'm pissed off because Dr. Detroit's site is also on strike, so i'm gonna miss the "epic" eviction. grrrrr.

[Sam:)]

Google still works,and you can just click the cached version of wikipedia:) Sure the only site of them all that i use is wikipedia, other than that and the grey bar over youporns logo, i dont notice a differance

[Scarlett.]

Rupert Murdoch's twitter
"Don't care about people not buying movies, programs or newspapers, just stealing them."

[Me. I Am Salman]

its still here
got my homework done in time LOL

[arista]

Rupert Murdoch's twitter
"Don't care about people not buying movies, programs or newspapers, just stealing them."


Yes Punks that Download Illegal
I want locked up


In America and UK.



Jobs are lost
I have seen the Damage Illegal Downloaders have done



Shock Them - Lock Them



Feel The Force

[Niall]

SOPA is ridiculous anyhow. America, self proclaimed "land of the free" wants to hamper that because big businesses are complaining that people aren't paying for their stuff?

I can see how torrent sites are taking money away from the entertainment industry but an outright ban is not the way to go about stopping it. It's just stupid because that will never stop torrents and files sharing sites because they will always find a loophole. It's just silly.

[arista]

SOPA is ridiculous anyhow. America, self proclaimed "land of the free" wants to hamper that because big businesses are complaining that people aren't paying for their stuff?

I can see how torrent sites are taking money away from the entertainment industry but an outright ban is not the way to go about stopping it. It's just stupid because that will never stop torrents and files haring sites because they will always find a loophole. It's just silly.



Until you are Tracked


Then off To Jail

[Niall]

Until you are Tracked


Then off To Jail

..and then another person will pick up from where the other left off.

It's just a never ending game of cat and mouse.

[arista]

..and then another person will pick up from where the other left off.

It's just a never ending game of cat and mouse.


Maybe
but once they are traced Off to Jail



Jobs are Lost due to Illegal Downloads
Fact

[Mystic Mock]

I'm conflicted about this. I can see both sides. I definitely support internet freedom, but also i support the American economy, and billions of dollars are being stolen from the American economy (especially California) by pirated movies and TV shows and Music. Entertainment is one of America's biggest exports, and we should be paid for the product we make.

But these people still buy these stuff at stores,it's ridiculous and considering the majority of people don't want it then it's not a democracy anymore.

[Mystic Mock]

The thing is Arista if this law goes through then you will just have trolls post illegal links on websites to get them shut down,the Internet is the last thing we have where we can actually be free to do what we want.

[arista]

The thing is Arista if this law goes through then you will just have trolls post illegal links on websites to get them shut down,the Internet is the last thing we have where we can actually be free to do what we want.



Its Got to Be Done


Jobs are more important than Trolls.


Napster Bloke, years back,
started all the kids
thinking its all Free. Its Not Free


The Sooner loads get Chucked In Jail
the better



After Time it will all sort out


You are a Legal Person

Or a Punk Pirate Criminal


Feel The Force

[Smithy]

I found a way to get around it on wiki :D

[arista]

I found a way to get around it on wiki :D


So did SkyNews HD Early this morning

[Smithy]

well I wasn't up early this morning, so me > them :hmph:

[arista]

well I wasn't up early this morning, so me > them :hmph:

Thats OK
We will get Everything Up and Running for you

[Mystic Mock]

Its Got to Be Done


Jobs are more important than Trolls.


Napster Bloke, years back,
started all the kids
thinking its all Free. Its Not Free


The Sooner loads get Chucked In Jail
the better



After Time it will all sort out


You are a Legal Person

Or a Punk Pirate Criminal


Feel The Force

But everybody's job is intact at the moment,trolls however could ruin website owners businesses if they put illegal content on the sites.

As you seem to care about people's businesses you shouldn't want that to happen.

[lostalex]

SOPA is ridiculous anyhow. America, self proclaimed "land of the free" wants to hamper that because big businesses are complaining that people aren't paying for their stuff?

I can see how torrent sites are taking money away from the entertainment industry but an outright ban is not the way to go about stopping it. It's just stupid because that will never stop torrents and files sharing sites because they will always find a loophole. It's just silly.

wait are you actually saying that you think "land of the free" means you should be able to steal anything you like? really?

Get a grip, i don't believe you are stupid enuf to believe that.

[Mystic Mock]

Speaking of breaking the law,America started off a war against Iraq despite the UN saying no so it's quite funny then when they are trying to punish Internet users for downloading Music or TV Shows.:joker:

[arista]

But everybody's job is intact at the moment,trolls however could ruin website owners businesses if they put illegal content on the sites.

As you seem to care about people's businesses you shouldn't want that to happen.



No

Trolls would be Scared of Jail - And sites can Ban them

After The actions that will happen soon.




Jobs are More Important
than Pirate Punks

[Mystic Mock]

No

Trolls would be Scared of Jail - And sites can Ban them

After The actions that will happen soon.




Jobs are More Important
than Pirate Punks

Have you heard of proxies? or trolls hacking into the site owners account? and also stuff like murder,rape,peadophiles,fraudsters,thieves and there emigration need to be sorted out before piracy which is one of the more petty crimes.

[Sam:)]

It seems unfare that america can control the "worlds internet"

[arista]

"Have you heard of proxies?"


Yes


Stay Legal


Or be a Punk Pirate and Go to Jail


Or if in the Sea - Die

[arista]

It seems unfare that america can control the "worlds internet"



It has to be Done


Or more Jobs will go.


Stay Legal - No Problem

[Harry!]

The real reason for this, of course, is that sites like wikileaks will not be able to leak top secret infomation showing how currupt the United States is, not illegal downloads.

[Mystic Mock]

The real reason for this, of course, is that sites like wikileaks will not be able to leak top secret infomation showing how currupt the United States is, not illegal downloads.

I think you are onto something here Harry,if that's the case then I hope Obama can come up with something behind the scenes.

[lostalex]

The real reason for this, of course, is that sites like wikileaks will not be able to leak top secret infomation showing how currupt the United States is, not illegal downloads.

wikileaks has nothing to do with it, wikileaks don't provide links to download hollywood movies lol.

[Mystic Mock]

wikileaks has nothing to do with it, wikileaks don't provide links to download hollywood movies lol.

Harry doesn't think it's because of the illegal downloads,Harry believes that they are trying to shut Wikileaks up because of them reporting currupt stories about the United States Government.

[Harry!]

What is more viable for the United States? The status of the country (and how the general public who are not nessasarily into politics or read the news in such detail) and how the country is viewed, compared to a few illegal downloads to watch movies or music. Which in turn is, of course, bad for the economy.

The Goverment (in general, not just US specific) is more interested in winning support/votes then physically trying to nurse the poor economy.

For example premoting research/investigation into finding the cure for cancer is more viable for the govererment then the actual cure.

If they were so conserned about the economy they would be SHOUTING at the banks DEMANDING they pay back their currupt loans. No, the goverment is best friends with the banks and wouldn't want to upset there "innocent" souls.

It all adds up really.

[Harry!]

And no I wasn't suggesting Wikileaks supplies people with file share links to watch movies.

[Scarlett.]

SOPA and PIPA are total jokes, the American government is run by religeous old men who have no idea how to send emails, they don't understand the far reaching consequences SOPA and PIPA will have for the world wide web.

Thank god for Obama, he shelved SOPA yesterday. PIPA is still a threat though

[Mystic Mock]

SOPA and PIPA are total jokes, the American government is run by religeous old men who have no idea how to send emails, they don't understand the far reaching consequences SOPA and PIPA will have for the world wide web.

Thank god for Obama, he shelved SOPA yesterday. PIPA is still a threat though

I don't get how the Republicans have so much power in America? if they was a party over here they would be losing to the BNP.

[lostalex]

Harry doesn't think it's because of the illegal downloads,Harry believes that they are trying to shut Wikileaks up because of them reporting currupt stories about the United States Government.

There were no corrupt stories in wikileaks. None of the actual cables from wikileaks showed the US doing anything against the law. that's why Bradley Manning's laywers are arguing that wikileaks did no harm, therefore he shouldn't be put in jail.

[lostalex]

SOPA and PIPA are total jokes, the American government is run by religeous old men who have no idea how to send emails, they don't understand the far reaching consequences SOPA and PIPA will have for the world wide web.

Thank god for Obama, he shelved SOPA yesterday. PIPA is still a threat though

It has nothing to do with the religious right. SOPA/PIPA are being pushed through by HOllywood and the Record Industry lobbyists. It has nothing to do with social conservatism, it's all about the entertainment industry protecting their products. And the entertainment industry is notoriously left wing, so you can't blame this on the Republicans.

[lostalex]

What is more viable for the United States? The status of the country (and how the general public who are not nessasarily into politics or read the news in such detail) and how the country is viewed, compared to a few illegal downloads to watch movies or music. Which in turn is, of course, bad for the economy.

The Goverment (in general, not just US specific) is more interested in winning support/votes then physically trying to nurse the poor economy.

For example premoting research/investigation into finding the cure for cancer is more viable for the govererment then the actual cure.

If they were so conserned about the economy they would be SHOUTING at the banks DEMANDING they pay back their currupt loans. No, the goverment is best friends with the banks and wouldn't want to upset there "innocent" souls.

It all adds up really.


i think the banks did repay their loans, and also the Auto industry did too. I was watching a show the other day about how the US government actually made a profit from the bailouts in 2008.

[Harry!]

i think the banks did repay their loans, and also the Auto industry did too. I was watching a show the other day about how the US government actually made a profit from the bailouts in 2008.

I was more refering to the UK banking crisis "The Depisit" (which is still the main cause internally for the UK economy) in that that post there but I can imagine the details of it in the US "Wall Street Crash" would be interesting...

[Scarlett.]

It has nothing to do with the religious right. SOPA/PIPA are being pushed through by HOllywood and the Record Industry lobbyists. It has nothing to do with social conservatism, it's all about the entertainment industry protecting their products. And the entertainment industry is notoriously left wing, so you can't blame this on the Republicans.

The Republicans are famously backwards people who will vote against anything they don't understand, they usually come from those southern states (the ones that give the rest of America a bad name) you can't be saying that if John McCain had won that he'd have blocked SOPA?

[Mystic Mock]

The Republicans are famously backwards people who will vote against anything they don't understand, they usually come from those southern states (the ones that give the rest of America a bad name) you can't be saying that if John McCain had won that he'd have blocked SOPA?

Also aren't the Republicans the worst for emigration aswell? which is more of a left wing view,no offence to lefties.

[lostalex]

The Republicans are famously backwards people who will vote against anything they don't understand, they usually come from those southern states (the ones that give the rest of America a bad name) you can't be saying that if John McCain had won that he'd have blocked SOPA?
sorry but yu are wrong, and you are showing your ignorance about the american political parties. This has absolutely nothing to do with conservatism AT ALL. The conservatives are too busy worrying about taxes and gay marriage to give a **** about this.

[Scarlett.]

sorry but yu are wrong, and you are showing your ignorance about the american political parties. This has absolutely nothing to do with conservatism AT ALL. The conservatives are too busy worrying about taxes and gay marriage to give a **** about this.

Exactly why SOPA would have got through if they were in charge

[lostalex]

Exactly why SOPA would have got through if they were in charge

Umm, they are in charge, the Republicans have a Majority in the House of Representatives, so i don't know what you mean...

[Scarlett.]

Umm, they are in charge, the Republicans have a Majority in the House of Representatives, so i don't know what you mean...

Neither do I :joker: You're right, I don't know the ins and outs of US politics

[Mystic Mock]

Umm, they are in charge, the Republicans have a Majority in the House of Representatives, so i don't know what you mean...

That's why I don't get the point of why Obama is President? they always overrule him on his ideas,infact i'm surprised he got away with shutting down SOPA.

[Ninastar]

Aaaaand Megaupload is gone

[Ithinkiloveyoutoo]

Aaaaand Megaupload is gone

:bawling:

[Mystic Mock]

Come on Obama you can stop this thing.

[Doogle]

If Hulkshare and/or Mediafire go I will kill myself.

[Scarlett.]

It's been taken down without using SOPA and PIPA, which will bring up arguements that, really, these two bills are not needed.

Megaupload, well lets be honest, it was a clear cut channel for piracy, they cost the US economy $500m and the owner is a New Zealand Millionairre.

[Shaun]

MU :bawling:

it used to be good but recently they made it pretty rubbish.

[Braden]

I'm actually going to have to choose a new route of life now that Megaupload has been closed down.

[Shaun]

It's okay Braden, we're here for you

[Jords]

:bawling:

[Fetch The Bolt Cutters]

i cant remember which one megaupload is :conf2:

[Sarah.]

I don't know what to do with my spare time anymore. :bawling:

[Samuel.]

Swizz Beatz was the CEO D:

[Harry!]

Where now can I watch 72 minutes worth of pleasure?

[Jords]

Apparently the Anonymous group (who are they!?) have hacked and shut down sites (inc. UMG) in retaliation! INTERNET STRIKES BACK.

[Jords]

http://www.complex.com/tech/2012/01/anonymous-takes-down-justice-dept-mpaa-riaa-and-umg-websites-in-honor-of-megaupload

[Smithy]

i cant remember which one megaupload is :conf2:the orange one

Where now can I watch 72 minutes worth of pleasure?

xtube

[Callum]

http://www.complex.com/tech/2012/01/anonymous-takes-down-justice-dept-mpaa-riaa-and-umg-websites-in-honor-of-megaupload

:D

[lily.]

Twitter - @AnonymousWiki


January 19th, 2012

Popular file-sharing website megaupload.com gets shutdown by U.S Justice - FBI and charged its founder with violating piracy laws. Four Megaupload members were also arrested. The FBI released a press release on its website which you can view here:
http://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/justice-department-charges-leaders-of-megaupload-with-widespread-online-copyright-infringement

We Anonymous are launching our largest attack ever on government and music industry sites. Lulz. The FBI didn't think they would get away with this did they? They should have expected us.



#OpMegaupload
The following sites were taken down in response to the FBI shutting down megaupload.com
:) TANGO DOWN


justice.gov
universalmusic.com
riaa.org
mpaa.org
copyright.gov
hadopi.fr
wmg.com
usdoj.gov
bmi.com
fbi.gov


DOX of MPAA CEO Chris Dodd (original: http://pastebin.com/mvLYNdWB)

Name: Christopher John Dodd, Jr.
Birthdate: May 27, 1944
Age: 67
Religion: Roman Catholic
Party Affiliation: Democratic Party
High School: Georgetown Preparatory School, Bethesda, MD
University: BA English Literature, Providence College (1966)
Law School: JD, University of Louisville School of Law (1972)
Occupations: US Senator, Connecticut (1981-2011), US Congressman, Connecticut 2nd (1975-80)
Current Position: Motion Picture Association of America Chairman & CEO (2011-Present)

Wife: Jackie Marie Clegg Dodd
Age: 49
Religion: Mormon
High School: Orem High School, Orem, UT
University: BA Communications and Political Science, Southern Utah State College (1987)
University: MA National Security Studies, Georgetown University
Occupation: Clegg International Consultants LLC Managing Partner (2001-Present)

Children: Grace Dodd (10), Christina Dodd (8)

Address 1:
8 7th Street Northeast, Washington, DC 20002-6022
Phone Number: (202) 548-6040
Property Value: $997,000 [http://bit.ly/A7wfpb]

Address 2:
53 Main Street, East Haddam, CT 06423-1305
Property Value: $453,400 [http://bit.ly/ynBXN0]

Motion Picture Association of America Corporate Offices:

Washington, D.C.
1600 Eye St., NW
Washington, D.C. 20006
Phone: (202) 293-1966
Fax: (202) 296-7410

Los Angeles
15301 Ventura Blvd., Building E
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
Phone: (818) 995-6600
Fax: (818) 285-4403

New York
200 White Plains Road 1st Floor
Tarrytown, NY 10591
Phone: (914) 333-8892
Fax: (914) 333-7541

Chicago
1010 Lake St.
Suite 422
Oak Park, IL 60301
708-660-0481
Phone: (708) 660-0481
Fax:(708) 660-0484

Dallas
1425 Greenway Dr.
Suite 270
Irving, TX 75038
Phone: (972) 756-9078
Fax: (972) 756-9402

Sao Paulo, Brazil
Rua Jerônimo da Veiga, 45, Conj 121/122, 12º Floor
Jardim Europa, São Paulo, S.P
04536-000, Brazil
Phone: 011-55-11-3667-2080
Website: www.mpaal.org.br

Brussels, Belgium
Motion Picture Association
Brussels office
Avenue des Arts 46 box 8
B - 1000 Brussels
Phone: +32 2 778 27 11
Fax: +32 2 778 27 00/+32 2 778 27 50

Mexico City, Mexico
Lafontaine #42
Chapultepec Polanco
Mexico, 11560 DF
Phone: 011-5255 5280 6878/5281 6090

Singapore
#04-07 Central Mall
No. 1 Magazine Road
Singapore 059567
Phone: +65 6253 1033
Phone: +65 6255 1838
Website: www.mpa-i.org

Toronto, Canada
55 St. Clair Avenue, West
Suite 210
Toronto, ON M4V 2Y7
Phone: (416) 961-1888
Phone: (416) 968-1016
Website: www.mpa-canada.org

MPAA Email: ContactUs@mpaa.org

Other Contact Info:
Website: http://chrisdodd.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SenChrisDodd
Twitter: http://twitter.com/SenChrisDodd
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/SenChrisDodd
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/SenChrisDodd
Miscellanous: http://www.peekyou.com/chris_dodd/229085828

We are Anonymous.
We are Legion.
We do not Forgive.
We do not Forget.
Expect Us.

@AnonymousWiki

Source: http://pastebin.com/WEydcBVV

[King Gizzard]

amazed that it's taken this long for them to crack down on file sharing websites

mediafire next, and i will cease to exist

[lily.]

I love mediafire. :/

For every one they shut down, another 10 will pop up though. The FBI won't win this fight.

Also, the Megaupload chief guy doesn't look too worried.. he's probably got it all sewn up legally. After all, he's merely providing a place for people to upload files. He's not responsible for their content. That would be like charging the guy who sold the knife to the other guy who used it to murder someone. Where does it stop?

[King Gizzard]

what do people honestly use megaupload for if not illegal downloading? are file sharing websites really used in the majority legally?

[lily.]

I would suspect not. But it doesn't alter the fact that as long as he says you can't put stuff up with copyright, and as long as he removes them when it's brought to his attention, the law can't really touch him, can it?

[Tom4784]

It's a pointless action that's achieved nothing but a backlash that's compromised the Government's own security.

I doubt they could actually charge the owner with anything since he hasn't technically done anything wrong. Taking down Megaupload will just give rise to other sites. There's no way to stop piracy occurring.

[lily.]

INTERNETS, 18th of January 2012.
PRESS RELEASE, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE.

Over a century ago Thomas Edison got the patent for a device which would "do for the eye what the phonograph does for
the ear". He called it the Kinetoscope. He was not only amongst the first to record video, he was also the first person
to own the copyright to a motion picture.

Because of Edisons patents for the motion pictures it was close to financially impossible to create motion pictures
in the North american east coast. The movie studios therefor relocated to California, and founded what we today call
Hollywood. The reason was mostly because there was no patent.
There was also no copyright to speak of, so the studios could copy old stories and make movies out of them - like
Fantasia, one of Disneys biggest hits ever.

So, the whole basis of this industry, that today is screaming about losing control over immaterial rights, is that they
circumvented immaterial rights. They copied (or put in their terminology: "stole") other peoples creative works,
without paying for it. They did it in order to make a huge profit. Today, they're all successful and most of the
studios are on the Fortune 500 list of the richest companies in the world. Congratulations - it's all based on being
able to re-use other peoples creative works. And today they hold the rights to what other people create.
If you want to get something released, you have to abide to their rules. The ones they created after circumventing
other peoples rules.

The reason they are always complainting about "pirates" today is simple. We've done what they did. We circumvented the
rules they created and created our own. We crushed their monopoly by giving people something more efficient. We allow
people to have direct communication between eachother, circumventing the profitable middle man, that in some cases take
over 107% of the profits (yes, you pay to work for them).
It's all based on the fact that we're competition.
We've proven that their existance in their current form is no longer needed. We're just better than they are.

And the funny part is that our rules are very similar to the founding ideas of the USA. We fight for freedom of speech.
We see all people as equal. We believe that the public, not the elite, should rule the nation. We believe that laws
should be created to serve the public, not the rich corporations.

The Pirate Bay is truly an international community. The team is spread all over the globe - but we've stayed out of the
USA. We have Swedish roots and a swedish friend said this:
The word SOPA means "trash" in Swedish. The word PIPA means "a pipe" in Swedish. This is of course not a coincidence.
They want to make the internet inte a one way pipe, with them at the top, shoving trash through the pipe down to the
rest of us obedient consumers.
The public opinion on this matter is clear. Ask anyone on the street and you'll learn that noone wants to be fed with
trash. Why the US government want the american people to be fed with trash is beyond our imagination but we hope that
you will stop them, before we all drown.

SOPA can't do anything to stop TPB. Worst case we'll change top level domain from our current .org to one of the
hundreds of other names that we already also use. In countries where TPB is blocked, China and Saudi Arabia springs to
mind, they block hundreds of our domain names. And did it work? Not really.
To fix the "problem of piracy" one should go to the source of the problem. The entertainment industry say they're
creating "culture" but what they really do is stuff like selling overpriced plushy dolls and making 11 year old girls
become anorexic. Either from working in the factories that creates the dolls for basically no salary or by watching
movies and tv shows that make them think that they're fat.

In the great Sid Meiers computer game Civilization you can build Wonders of the world. One of the most powerful ones
is Hollywood. With that you control all culture and media in the world. Rupert Murdoch was happy with MySpace and had
no problems with their own piracy until it failed. Now he's complainting that Google is the biggest source of piracy
in the world - because he's jealous. He wants to retain his mind control over people and clearly you'd get a more
honest view of things on Wikipedia and Google than on Fox News.

Some facts (years, dates) are probably wrong in this press release. The reason is that we can't access this information
when Wikipedia is blacked out. Because of pressure from our failing competitors. We're sorry for that.

THE PIRATE BAY, (K)2012

Source: http://static.thepiratebay.org/legal/sopa.txt

[lily.]

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ly2hz5rYv31qi0ocso1_500.jpg

[Scarlett.]

PIPA has also now been shelved with SOPA
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/jan/20/pipa-vote-shelved-harry-reid

Don't **** with the internet xD

[Mystic Mock]

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ly2hz5rYv31qi0ocso1_500.jpg

Let's go for it.:dance:

[lily.]

PIPA has also now been shelved with SOPA
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/jan/20/pipa-vote-shelved-harry-reid

Don't **** with the internet xD

The people have spoken. :)

[Ninastar]

tbh, i don't blame the government for doing this. Imagine how much they lose a year D:

[Mystic Mock]

They've said it's not perminant though so watch out for any moves that they do in the future.

[Mystic Mock]

tbh, i don't blame the government for doing this. Imagine how much they lose a year D:

Don't worry to much as they make it all back.

[lily.]

SOPA and PIPA dropped by Congress in wake of largest online protest in history

After a long week of raising the stakes it seems that the anti SOPA/PIPA activists have won the day. On Friday January 20th, Congress dropped the bills in the wake of the largest online protest in history. An incredible 13 million people took time to fill out a petition to implore congress to oppose the bills in order to keep the internet free of censorship. You can see the astonishing numbers here.

This activism, alongside the web “blackout” on Wednesday by 1,000s of websites including Wikipedia and Reddit, was unprecedented. Even the MPAA (one of the largest lobbies for the awful bills) was shocked having previously considered SOPA and PIPA a “slam dunk.” MPAA Chairman and former Senator Chris Dodd told the New York Times in a statement that “this was a whole new different game all of a sudden.”

“This is altogether a new effect,” Mr. Dodd said, likening the online community’s response to the Arab spring movement. He even went so far as to comment that he could not remember seeing “an effort that was moving with this degree of support change this dramatically” in the last 40 years.


Even China, where a site called Weibo, similar to Twitter, has a team of censors on staff to edit or delete posts with sensitive political content, marveled at the American response to online censorship. Reminding us the importance of internet freedom and prompting commentator Liu Qingyan to write, “We should learn something from the way these American Internet companies protested against SOPA and PIPA. A free and democratic society depends on every one of us caring about politics and fighting for our rights. We will not achieve it by avoiding talk about politics”

And while those who were against these bills (like myself and the rest of my compatriots here at pnosker.com) can take a breather and celebrate a momentous victory I do want to stress that this was only the beginning. The intent that originally formed these bills and the money that corrupted the politicians to support them is still out there. I fully expect a bill like SOPA and PIPA to return to Congress, but this time the entertainment industry will know the power of the online community and I’m sure will take special precautions to make sure the same thing doesn’t happen again. This is why I hope Congress will heed the words of Internet activists (as well as the White House) in starting over to gauge the true scope of the issue of online piracy and redraft a legislation that consults experts who understand how internet technologies work.

It seems that Anonymous was right, that “our power [was] too strong. Soon [they would] have to listen to the people. This [was] a time of action.” We did not sit and watch nor did we sit and cheer, we were not silenced.

But at the risk of repeating myself I do want to emphasize that this type of legislation will be back so long as Hollywood has the money to lobby our government and corrupt our leaders.

Borrowing again from Anonymous, I urge you not to forgive and not to forget. Expect them, for they will be coming.

SOURCE (http://tech.pnosker.com/2012/01/20/sopa-and-pipa-dropped-by-congress-in-wake-of-largest-online-protest-in-history/)