by MP for Aljunied GRC, Pritam Singh
I refer to the Minister’s comments made in early January at the launch of “The Mortal Enemy”, the winning trailer for The Originals Get Reel Contest organised by the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS), where it was revealed that the government is in discussion with the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) over the issue of piracy and intellectual property protection.
It is noteworthy that the government’s concerns sounds similiar to the concerns of some US lawmakers, who have sought to pursue the now apparently de-railed legislative proposals in the US for legislation known as the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA).
Mr Chairman, one of the main purposes of these bills was to make it harder for sites — especially those located outside the United States — to sell or distribute pirated copyrighted material such as movies and music as well as physical goods such as counterfeit purses and watches. On the one hand, the importance of protecting intellectual property is self-evident. However, the worry is that such a move will introduce many unwanted consequences such as the stifling of legitimate expression of free speech. On of the biggest fears is that such legislation can be abused and could lead to censorship, on the pretext of protecting intellectual property and preventing online piracy.
Since the launch of the Mortal Enemy and Minister’s remarks on the same, SOPA and PIPA are apparently dead in the water in the US, as the co-sponsors of the legislation have withdrawn the bill, ostensibly to seek more agreement on the matter. On its part, the Obama administration has said that it would not support any legislation that reduces freedom of expression, increases cybersecurity risk, or undermines the dynamic, innovative global Internet even as it recognises the serious problems posed by online piracy.
Can the Minister please clarify what stage of talks the government is at with the MPAA, and what plans it currently has for similar legislation in Singapore.