Wikipedia
says it will show solidarity with the protest against an anti-piracy
bill before the U.S. Congress by shutting down for a day. Calling it a
“decision of the Wikipedia community,” founder Jimmy Wales said the
internet encyclopedia plans to join other websites in a “blackout”
tomorrow to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA, a controversial
anti-piracy bill being debated in Congress. It joins several sites
saying they’ll shut down in protest of the House legislation and its
Senate equivalent, the Protect IP Act, or PIPA. IP stands for
Intellectual Property. The bills are supported by copyright owners,
including record companies and Hollywood studios, but are slammed by
critics as a threat to free speech on the internet.
