UK's TIGA, Jagex speak out against SOPA

Runescape creator Jagex and UK trade body TIGA are the latest to speak out against the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act, noting that the proposed U.S. legislation will be "inhibiting innovation." The act, which many in the game industry have spoken out against, would give the U.S. government and copyright holders the ability to seek court orders to block United States internet users from accessing sites accused of primarily being dedicated to copyright and trademark infringement. Numerous game developers have already spoken out against SOPA, including Mojang (Minecraft), Red 5 (Firefall), Frozenbyte (Trine) and Runic (Torchlight). As reported by technology website Digital Spy, Jagex chief executive Mark Gerhard has said that the company is "fervently opposed" to SOPA, noting that "it will essentially create a national censorship firewall for American internet users." "Specifically this could crush the community element of online gaming and could result in a huge lack of freedom of speech, creativity and opinion sharing," he noted. "Secondary to providing compelling games, Jagex provides a social platform for our own community which could be hugely affected, negatively impacting on community sharing, forum activity, even in-game chat." TIGA chief executive Dr Richard Wilson added that the legislation is "potentially damaging" for the online gaming business. "The worry is that this legislation would expose online games businesses to damaging legal action, while inhibiting innovation and leading to over-caution online," he explained. "Video game companies could have to spend time and money analyzing the behavior of their users. TIGA understands the need to clamp down on rogue websites - those which blatantly make money from piracy and therefore restrict the profit margins of developers and digital publishers - but it believes SOPA would be a sledgehammer cracking a nut."