WHIPER, redux

When I first posted about the PRO-IP Act, I never thought it would it go anywhere in the senate.  I was wrong. Senate Bill 3325 titled “Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act of 2008″ was passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee last week and could be voted on by the full senate very soon. 

Congress dropped the terrible acronym “WHIPER” and replaced it with the less laugh-inducing “Intellectual Property Enforcement Representative” (“IPEC”).  Otherwise, the bill still directs substantial resources towards prosecuting and punishing IP infringers. It would authorize the Attorney General to prosecute civil Copyright law violations (currently, copyright registration owners are the only people with standing to sue infringers in civil matters) as well as providing inter-agency coordination and enhanced funding to U.S. Government offices charged with IP protection. According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, empowering the AG to go after individuals on behalf of rights holder is a ”disturbing change” because those types of offenses can and will be pursued by the parties who believe they have actually been harmed, namely the copyright owners. 

However, many small or new content makers are unable to afford pursuing infringers in U.S. Courts.  Perhaps empowering the government to enforce their rights (essentially representing them) would actually serve to level the playing field between your independent  photographer and Warner Brothers.  On the other hand, it’s more likely that the new law will be used by large media companies to step up their prosecuton of individuals.  According to Public Knowledge, the RIAA alone sued or threatened to sue some 30,000 individuals in just the last five years.  If this bill is signed into law, the number of suits will likely increase and be paid for with Federal tax dollars.