White House official response to SOPA and PIPA

16 January 2012 - On 14 January, the White House officially responded to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). Both acts are designed to crack down on foreign-based rogue websites. The Obama Administration’s statement made clear that the White House will not support legislation that disrupts the open standards of the Internet. The statement also reiterated the fact that "online piracy is a real problem that harms the American economy" and that 2012 should see more succinct legislation that targets the source of foreign copyright infringement.
"While we believe that online piracy by foreign websites is a serious problem that requires a serious legislative response, we will not support legislation that reduces freedom of expression, increases cybersecurity risk, or undermines the dynamic, innovative global Internet,” said the Administration.
Crucially, the statement highlighted the point that moving forward, the administration “expects and encourages all private parties, including both content creators and Internet platform providers to adopt voluntary measures and best practices to reduce online piracy.”