Here is an essay I wrote on the subject:
You missed the new episode of Two and a Half Men, and you’re about to sell your car for breaking down on the ride home when you remember, like most people in the 21st century, you have a computer and an Internet connection. YouTube, Hulu, Megavideo, or hundreds of other sites are available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week for you to watch almost anything. The Internet has changed the way we entertain ourselves by making products of the entertainment industry “free” and easily accessible. There have been attempts to curb online piracy, like SOPA and PIPA, but they have failed so far because of overwhelming opposition from Internet users and popular sites, like Reddit and Wikipedia, that would have been affected by the passage of the acts in ways outside of the bounds of strictly online piracy. It is obvious that there is a point of clash between the entertainment industry leaders, looking to make the most money possible from their products and yet too scared to harness the Internet as a new medium, and the Internet users, wanting to enjoy the products without the constraints of the outdated industry standards; however this argument is growing into a battle over copyright infringement involving the introduction of legislation that would be harmful to technological progress, and the winner of this battle will likely decide the future of the entertainment industry.
SOPA, which is an abbreviation for the Stop Online Piracy Act, and PIPA, which is an abbreviation for the Protect IP Act, were attempts by the 112th congress to “promote prosperity, creativity, entrepreneurship, and innovation by combating the theft of U.S. property, and for other purposes.”[1] Both acts are very complicated and, likely because of this reason, are full of loopholes that can enable infringement of rights to privacy and Internet freedom while attempting to prevent infringement of copyrighted material. Summarized, the acts are meant to allow any company and the U.S. government to punish copyright infringement by “black listing” any site that is found guilty of it and cutting that site’s funding by making it illegal to advertise on the site or to display the site in search engines.[2] This means the bills would affect foreign sites as well. Though there are good intentions in writing these acts, they are currently written in a way that would prevent freedom of speech and act in opposition to their goal to promote innovation or creativity online.[3] It is because of these reasons that the entertainment industry wants the acts to pass, so it can gain leverage in a losing battle, whereas Internet users are against the acts because they would hinder progress as well as the status quo.
Now that more is known about the acts, it is easy to see why those at the top in the entertainment industry would favor the passing of these bills since it would make it a criminal offense worldwide to display material infringing upon copyright laws (like movies, television shows, and music) and allow the U.S. government to take action against it in a variety of ways. If you were an artist, actor, or anyone who makes their living from intellectual property or the products of the entertainment industry, you would want these acts or acts with the same purpose to pass. The Wall Street Journal explained it simply with an anecdote about Los Angeles rock artist Pete Yorn in which they explained that, had this been a decade ago, Yorn would be making much more from his music than he does in today’s day and age because piracy of his music on the Internet reduces his profits substantially.[4] The Internet has “destroyed the music business,” as John Mellencamp said, or at least the way it once was.[5] The Internet’s role in the entertainment industry has definitely been detrimental in some aspects like album sales, for example, because now people rarely pay for music and, if they do, it is usually one song at a time. More restrictions on the Internet to protect copyrighted material would be beneficial if you are on the production and distribution end because it would be more stable financially. In other words, film and music stars and all of the people behind the scenes would be able to make more money than they already do. This isn’t unfair, especially in a legal rather than moral sense, but is it necessary? The entertainment industry would argue yes, but it would not be if the industry would accept the changing of the times and use the Internet in a positive way to advance the areas that can be strengthened with the far-reaching, influential power of the Internet.
If the entertainment industry continues to push for legislation like SOPA and PIPA, how would this affect the future of the entertainment industry? If something were done about restricting the power of the Internet and giving more power to those cracking down on removing copyrighted material, the entertainment industry would revert to what it once was. Consumers would actually have to buy their music and go to the theaters to see a film. The industry would become a “cash cow” again like it once was with the television boom and the invention of new ways to listen to music like the CD player. What isn’t being taken into consideration, however, is that technology has also been good for the entertainment industry. The two previous inventions I mentioned, the television and the CD player, are obvious in their benefits, but the Internet has done more for the entertainment industry than hurt it. With new technologies, and the Internet being the main one, it is now easier to produce and much easier to distribute content. As entertainment lawyer Whitney Broussard explains, a band would have to spend much more money to get started a decade ago than they would today. Now a band could make their music on a laptop and from the comfort of their studio or bedroom and share it with millions of people on sites like Sound Cloud or sell their music on sites like CD Baby.[6] Justin Bieber, for example, rakes in the dough for many other people affiliated with him in the industry, and he got his start by singing on YouTube, which is something the SOPA and PIPA acts would deem illegal.[7] A good analogy, I think, is this one from singularitylaw.com:
“Record companies also were saying just a few years ago that they would never sell music downloads since that would interfere with their current distribution networks. But, of course, Napster forced their hand (or some would say gave them an excuse for turning their backs on their distributors and retailers). Napster showed that there was an enormous demand for music downloads, and if there were not legitimate download sites, users would download music illegally. Now we have iTunes and many other legitimate download sites that are putting millions of dollars into the coffers of the record companies, leaving the traditional distributors to fend for themselves. The bankruptcy filings of Odyssey Records, Tower Records, and massive closings of Sam Goody stores and those of other CD retailers was not just a coincidence.”[8]
The entertainment industry is afraid of the negative effects the Internet can have on their revenue, and, if they continue urging for the government to do something on their behalf to stop copyright infringement altogether, the industry will hurt the progress of the Internet even if it may help themselves fill their bank accounts.
The Internet users have an expectedly different stance on the issue. Though some users simply wanted the bills not to pass because they became too used to not paying for music or movies, a large number of users oppose the bills for sound reasons like protecting the fundamentals of the Internet and ensuring the possibility of innovation. Had the Internet been restricted like the SOPA and PIPA acts would have it even a few years ago, many of the sites that define a majority of the population’s site traffic would not even be around. If sites like Facebook, YouTube, and Reddit would have to be monitored for each and every post to make sure there wasn’t any form of copyright infringement, they would not have been able to handle the responsibility financially.[3] This also prevents innovation since the bigger companies could stamp out new competition with similar goals but a new way of going about it by accusing them of copyright infringement. Even Republican Senator Marco Rubio wrote on his Facebook that he no longer supported the acts as they were written because of the “impact the bill could have on access to the Internet” and the “potentially unreasonable expansion of the federal government’s power to impact the Internet.”[9] Essentially, the Internet users who oppose these bills would not want such restrictions on their Internet freedom. To Internet users, the Internet is a free, open space and the introduction of restrictions because the entertainment industry is hurting is not likely to ever be approved of by the masses. The users have power in numbers and a reason to fight other than money, so they will continue to oppose SOPA, PIPA, and any bills like them.
If the Internet users are successful in stopping restrictions of the Internet, this could very well be the downfall of the entertainment industry as we know it. This isn’t to say that there will be no more new music or films coming out, but it is likely that many of the entertainment monopolies that are around today will no longer be around in the future. Instead, independent artists and filmmakers will have just as accessible an audience and will be able to distribute their products easily. The future of the entertainment industry would be much different than how it is today, but it may be better depending on if you’re a hopeful musician rather than a current industry executive. My personal opinion is that this is already happening and the entertainment industry will either have to adapt to the Internet as a new medium like they did with television or make a compromise with Internet users so that the products that they are trying to prevent from being illegally downloaded will be distributed freely, and the entertainment industry will have to become a more interactive industry by focusing more on entertaining actual audiences of people. For example, rather than selling the music, the industry would focus on more concerts and festivals or some new form of interactive entertainment. If the industry will not compromise, the next possibility that makes the most sense to me is that the entertainment industry will no longer be an exclusive industry, but it will become a public playground where any filmmaker or musician can upload their movies and songs. This would put the people in power, but create another problem in that now there is a need for people to sift through everything and find the products worth watching or listening to; maybe the entertainment industry professionals could do that or find another way to compromise with the Internet users. The future of the entertainment industry is unclear, but the Internet will definitely play a role whether the industry leaders and legislators who support SOPA and PIPA will accept it or not.
New technology and entertainment work opposite one another, and yet they move each other forward like Yin and Yang. When the television was invented, those in charge of radio were afraid it would ruin the entertainment industry, but the television only enhanced it and added many more possibilities. In the end it made the entertainment industry more lucrative and powerful than ever. A similar situation is currently happening with the Internet and the entertainment industry. There is opposition to the Internet as a medium because it currently has too many financial drawbacks since information and products like music and film can be enjoyed for free. However, the Internet is becoming more and more a part of everyone’s daily lives and is even already being used in the entertainment industry for production and distribution, among other uses. The entertainment industry would want restrictions on the Internet for material that infringes upon copyright law, and if it ever happens Internet freedom and innovation are at stake. The users of the Internet, however, would want not want there to be any restrictions. This would likely be the downfall of the entertainment industry as it is today because no one would pay for movies, music, or the like. However, the entertainment industry does not have to be gone for good. The Internet has played a huge role so far in changing many aspects of our lives, and if the entertainment industry accepts and harnesses it as a medium, the industry could transform itself into something even better than it is today.
Works Cited
1. "Govtrack.us." H.R. 3261: Stop Online Piracy Act (GovTrack.us). Web. 24 Feb. 2012.
2. "How SOPA/PIPA Can Affect You." 1stwebdesigner – Graphic and Web Design Blog. Web. 24 Feb. 2012.
3. Timm, Trevor. "How PIPA and SOPA Violate White House Principles Supporting Free Speech and Innovation." Electronic Frontier Foundation. 6 Jan. 2012. Web. 24 Feb. 2012.
4. Wurtzel, Elizabeth Lee. "The Internet Is Ruining America's Movies and Music." The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, 09 Aug. 2008. Web. 24 Feb. 2012.
5. "The DIY Musician Blog." DIY Musician. Web. 24 Feb. 2012.
6. "The Role Of Technology In The Music Industry Today - ArtistshouseMusic." Web. 24 Feb. 2012.
7. "FREE BIEBER! Justin Bieber Faces 5 Brutal Years in Prison." Free Bieber: Vote No on S. 978. Web. 24 Feb. 2012.
8. "Singularity Law." Will the Internet Finally Undo the Entertainment Industry Monopoly Over Entertainment? Web. 24 Feb. 2012.