A group of ad networks today officially signed on to a
voluntary plan aimed at curbing online piracy.
Google, AOL, Yahoo and other Web companies that
operate ad networks pledged to follow an anti-piracy policy that involves cutting off sites -- namely, those that are “principally dedicated to selling counterfeit goods or engaging in copyright
piracy.”
The agreement contemplates a notice-and-takedown system for “rogue” sites. Here's how that would work: Content owners would notify ad networks about sites that
allegedly infringe copyright or trademark. The ad networks will then investigate the situation. After doing so, the networks can take a variety of measures -- up to and including expelling the site
from the network.
Signatories include 24/7 Media, Adtegrity, AOL, Condé Nast, Google, Microsoft, SpotXchange, and Yahoo. The White House praised news of the deal, which the Interactive Advertising Bureau helped forge.
Reaction to the deal has been mixed. Digital rights group Public Knowledge called the agreement “a sensible document that seeks to balance internet users' free speech, privacy and fair use
rights with content owners desire to protect their copyrights.”
But Santa Clara University law professor Eric Goldman compared the new arrangement to the much-maligned Stop Online Piracy Act -- which would have empowered courts to prohibit ad
networks from doing business with sites “dedicated” to piracy. Google and other Web companies, along with digital rights activists, successfully defeated that law last year. Among other concerns, critics said the law could harm companies that rely on
user-generated content; those companies appear to face an increase risk of being labeled as “rogue” -- especially if they lack the resources to actively police posts for infringement.