PROTECT IP Act of 2011

What does PROTECT IP Act of 2011 mean?

The PROTECT IP Act (PIPA), formally known as the Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act of 2011, was a proposed United States federal law that aimed to combat online Copyright infringement by expanding the powers of law enforcement agencies and copyright holders. The bill was introduced in the Senate by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and in the House of Representatives by Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX).

PIPA was a controversial piece of legislation, with proponents arguing that it was necessary to protect intellectual property rights and the creative economy, while opponents criticized it for granting excessive power to copyright holders and for potentially infringing on freedom of speech. The bill was eventually defeated in the Senate in 2012.

Applications

PIPA was intended to address the issue of online Piracy, which copyright holders argued was costing them billions of dollars in lost revenue. The bill proposed a number of measures to combat piracy, including:

• Allowing the Department of Justice to seek court orders to block websites that are dedicated to Copyright Infringement.
• Requiring search engines to remove links to infringing websites from their results.
• Empowering copyright holders to send takedown notices to websites that host infringing content, and requiring websites to comply with these notices or face legal consequences.

PIPA was supported by a number of organizations representing copyright holders, including the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and the Business Software Alliance (BSA). These organizations argued that PIPA was necessary to protect intellectual property rights and to ensure that creators are fairly compensated for their work.

History

The PROTECT IP Act was first introduced in the Senate in May 2011. The bill was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, which held a hearing on the bill in June 2011. The committee approved the bill in July 2011, and it was scheduled for a vote by the full Senate in September 2011. However, the vote was delayed after concerns were raised about the bill’s potential impact on freedom of speech.

The bill was ultimately defeated in the Senate in January 2012, after a number of senators withdrew their support for the bill. The defeat of PIPA was a major victory for opponents of the bill, who argued that it would have been a disaster for the Internet.