Analysis: SOPA protest reveals scale of UK discontent

The debate over how to protect copyright in the digital age has scaled new heights of rancour, with neither side showing any sign of backing down

Wikipedia’s recent 24-hour blackout in protest against the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA) in the US was a potent reminder that the many issues of how to appropriately regulate the internet continue to vex ISPs, content creators and policy makers on this side of the pond as well.

The Digital Economy Act (DEA), a bill that was rushed through parliament in the dying days of the last Labour government, is core to the ongoing controversy, due to it including provisions for website blocking. These provisions are supported by copyright holders, such as the Motion Picture Association of America, but are contested by digital campaigners who claim they will result in the internet being policed.

ISPs such as BT and TalkTalk also object to being made responsible for blocking the copyright-infringing sites - an obligation that they argue could sometimes be technically difficult to fulfil and carries the risk of financial penalties.