14 DAY TRIAL // The Entertainment Software Association, the group that lobbies on behalf of the interests of video game developers and publishers, have announced that it is no longer actively supporting the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act but urges representatives and senators to continue looking for ways to battle piracy.
Legislators in both the Congress and the Senate of the United States of American have announced late during last week that they have shelved the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act indefinitely because they now lack enough political support to be put to a vote.
The Entertainment Software Association has released on official statement which prods the government and the legislators of the United States to “refocus their energies on producing a solution that effectively balances both creative and technology interests.”
The official document adds, “As an industry of innovators and creators, we understand the importance of both technological innovation and content protection and are committed to working with all parties to encourage a balanced solution.”
A number of companies that are also members of the ESA have announced in early 2012 that they are not supporting the two bills that would target those sites that host pirated content but could also restrict the overall freedom of expression on the Internet.
Developers like Red 5, Epic, Riot and Jagex have come out against SOPA and have put the ESA in the weird position of having to lobby for a bill which was not supported by all its members.
On January 18 a number of websites, the most high profile being Wikipedia, have gone dark to protest the proposed legislation and this public action, coupled with lobbying from high tech companies like Google, seem to have persuaded a number of legislators to drop support for SOPA and PIPA.
Piracy has always been a big problem for video game companies, especially those that are working for the PC.