Keep APIs Open

Last week, Engine joined software innovators, startups, and investors as a signatory on an amicus brief in Oracle v. Google -- a case centered on how far copyright should be extended with regards to Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). We are in favor of limiting copyright on APIs in order to protect innovation and investment.

In 2012, district courts ruled in favor of Google, concluding that Java APIs used by Android are not subject to copyright. The Federal Circuit is now reviewing the case on appeal.

We are proud to put our name on the brief because we recognize the need for software startups to innovate and the drive economy forward. Startup innovation requires interoperability (ie. open exchange of information) between systems and programs, and this is fostered by APIs.

Our interest is in “preserving the deliberate balance Congress and the courts have established for software copyright.” This balance is integral to maintaining a competitive marketplace and investment landscape. Should copyright restrictions on API’s be tightened, the real-world implications could be significant -- could decrease competition in software innovation and chill investment.

We’d like to recognize Engine member startups who also signed this brief, including: Bright Funds, Hattery, Hipiti, and Vessel. We are also thankful that prominent investors and technology industry veterans lent their voices, including Engine Advisory Board Member Brad Feld, and his partner at Foundry Group, Jason Mendelson. You can find a full list of signatories here.

We encourage you to check out the abstract and full brief.

Related articles:

• Computer Scientists Urge Court to Block Copyright Claims in Oracle v. Google

  API Fight

Celebrating The Free and Open Internet

One year ago today, the internet community came together as never before. Users, entrepreneurs, policy experts, and activists united to defeat the Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Act. The downfall of SOPA and PIPA opened a new chapter in internet and technology-based activism and sent a resounding message to Washington: protect the free and open internet.

Today, we’re launching “Stop The Wall” a video that shows how Engine fought to stop SOPA and PIPA, and how we as a community succeeded through the dedication of so many engaged individuals across the United States who took the time to call their legislators.

With the new Congress, we aim to make startups and entrepreneurship a central priority for lawmakers -- beyond copyright. Patent, immigration, spectrum, data, and financial regulation will all be debated in the coming months. The Engine team expects to be at the fore of these debates, connecting our members to Washington and reminding policymakers that the internet is powering our economy.

The last year hasn’t been without its blows. The recent passing of Aaron Swartz is an immeasurable loss, foremost to his family and friends, and also to the internet’s collective voice. Demand Progress, Aaron’s organization with whom Engine collaborated during the SOPA/PIPA fight, is just one aspect of his important body of work, which touches everything from public policy, Creative Commons, Reddit, and RSS. As we celebrate our community’s efforts on January 18th last year, we also remember Aaron and strive to continue the work he devoted his life to.

Tonight, we’re gathering with members, friends, and fellow activists to celebrate the end of SOPA and PIPA. We will also reflect on the life, work, and spirit of Aaron Swartz.

His life demonstrates yet again the power of the internet to enable one voice to overcome a chorus of conventional wisdom. Aaron empowered many in the fight against a closed internet and obsolescent legal structures. Engine aims to continue this fight and to act as an agent of change in government.

Thank you for your commitment in 2012. The internet is, and will continue to be, better because of the work of people committed to our internet and our economy.

KC Startups for Open Internet

The Internet 2012 Bus Tour stopped off the campaign trail in Kansas City on Sunday, to participate in a panel hosted by the Kauffman Foundation on the future of entrepreneurship.

The internet bus tour, making its way from Denver, CO to Danville, KY, started its route after the first presidential debate last week. The aim? To show that a free and open internet isn’t a partisan issue or one restricted to small areas of the country. The bus, which will carry a group of reporters and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian among others, will travel through the heartland to meet with people and collect stories of how they use the internet.

The event on Sunday was an opportunity for the Internet Bus riders to hear from the Kansas City startup community about how the internet has enabled their businesses to thrive. Kauffman’s Cameron Cushman told Engine; “The future of entrepreneurship is going to involve technology in some fashion. We need to make sure the internet remains a medium that entrepreneurs can use.”

Panelists included local entrepreneurs from AgLocal,Leap2, and Neighbor.ly. Jase Wilson from Neighbor.ly, a civic engagement platform that allows people and companies to invest in civic projects they want to see carried out in their cities and neighborhoods, spoke to Engine about the importance of campaigning for an open internet: “Open internet enables us. Neighbor.ly along with countless other e-commerce systems would be a non-starter if the internet were beholden to interest groups. We're able to try out ideas and provide a valuable service for next to nothing thanks to the open internet. The cost of participating as a platform in a non-open internet would skyrocket, removing lean startups like ours from the ecosystem.”

And that ecosystem is vital not just to the health of the entrepreneurial community in Kansas or any other individual community in the United States. Entrepreneurship is driving job growth across the country, and a thriving and open internet is vital to the continued recovery and growth of the economy. We’ll be tracking the bus as it rolls across the country campaigning for the internet, hitting the innovation hot spots in the heartland and further amplifying the voices of entrepreneurs and internet users from coast to coast.

Internet Radio Bill Good for Innovation, Startups

While the internet and startups play a critical role in driving innovation in content industries, the relationship between incumbent companies and their young competitors has never been harmonious. From the advent of radio to the launch of Napster, disruptive technologies have experienced legal barriers to markets. The Internet Radio Fairness Act of 2012 -- introduced by Oregon Democratic Senator Ron Wyden in the Senate and Utah Republican Representative Jason Chaffetz in the House -- will help boost web-based music services by leveling the playing field for all radio broadcasters.

Internet radio broadcasters pay higher rates to play the same songs than other music distributors using different technologies. An August Brookings Institution paper on the rate differential concluded that the policy discourages new companies from entering the market. The paper notes that internet radio companies may be compelled to pay a larger share of their revenue to acquire the rights to play music than other radio services using different technologies, such as satellite radio.

Constant innovation drives the music industry. Where iTunes and Pandora began disrupting through digital distribution, companies like Grooveshark, TuneIn, and Spotify continue to push the envelope. Young businesses often have the greatest difficulty maintaining steady revenue flow. Government shouldn’t be in the business of increasing barriers to entrepreneurship and propping up incumbent industries. We welcome Senator Wyden and Representative Chaffetz’s bills and encourage Congress to pass legislation that promotes competition in all markets.

Karlo Dizon on Open Internet, Guam, and Effecting Change in Congress

Last week, Karlo Dizon, a 27-year-old Guamanian and graduate of Yale University, announced his candidacy for Guam’s non-voting delegate seat in the United States Congress. He did so in two ways -- the traditional means of filing paperwork with the territory’s elections office, and also by conducting an AMA, or ‘Ask Me Anything’, post on the popular social news aggregator Reddit. Mr. Dizon has made campaigning for a free and open internet a cornerstone of his run for office, so we asked him to talk about his run for Congress, his views on the internet and how they impact his potential constituents on Guam in a Q&A.

ENGINE: So, you’re running for Congress. Why?

KARLO DIZON: I ran because I was dissatisfied with the current Congresswoman but few were willing to step up to the plate. I have always believed in the ability of the democratic process to provide the best for our society, and consequently, I have grown uncomfortable with the direction and climate Congress has been taking for quite some time. In the spirit of being the change you want to see in the world, I thought it was time I try to affect change myself. I suppose that is really the primary reason: rather than hoping the current Congresswoman would listen to the growing concerns of the people of Guam, I would champion change directly by running for Congress.

E: A lot of the public discussion of your campaign is based around ideas of a free and open internet. How do you think this affects your constituency in Guam? Do you see it as a more national issue or one of particular local importance?

KD: Defending a free and open internet should be a fundamental priority for anyone who values democracy. As such I don’t know if I could separate the national and local effects as two different things. Just as I see my local heritage being influenced by and inseparable from national ideals of freedom, self-sufficiency, and democracy, so, too, do I understand the effects of legislation such as SOPA, PIPA and CISPA to be disastrous to the nation and my island. However, it should be stated that for a relatively remote island in the Pacific, there are specific worries for what CISPA would mean for Guam. Namely, if freedoms are curtailed and the use of the internet becomes associated with risking privacy, our dependence on the internet for consuming goods and information from the mainland would jeopardize our people’s ability to advance the pursuit of equality with standards of living enjoyed in the rest of the United States.

E: You announced your campaign to people worldwide in a Reddit thread. How have internet-based tools helped you broadcast your message to the electorate?

KD: Guam is still developing a sense of online presence for political outreach purposes. We hope that the way we’re running this campaign will encourage all future elections to tap into this resource, as it provides a forum for interacting with people on a more individual level. As of now, we’re primarily using Facebook and a campaign website that hooks to a backend database. I genuinely believe that Facebook is the next level of political communication--it provides the means for a two-way conversation and is instantly received by the voters on their screens or phones, compared to a website that voters have to actively access themselves.We have started to see individuals making their way up to us because they saw our online presence, agreed with our goals, and wanted to see how they could help. It reinforces our belief that providing open access to information online is pivotal not only for the democratic process but also in forging stronger ties with the community as a whole. And of course, we look forward to advancing an online political culture that utilizes more of the available tools in order to enfranchise younger generations.

E: What would your goals be if elected, especially with regard to internet openness, and what effect do you think you can have in Congress as a non-voting delegate?

KD: By and large my goals echo that of the Democratic Party, and even more so with regards to internet openness. I support the Obama administration’s defense of the American people’s privacy, data confidentiality and civil liberties, and I agree that the internet is public domain. I would fight to encourage the President’s current stance of vetoing CISPA, and proactively look into ways of preventing further legislation from ever getting this far. As per the vote, I do think it is important to remember that as the delegate from Guam, I would have a vote in committees. To the extent that I can influence committee decisions and authorship of bills, then, I think there is plenty of room to influence Congress. It is true that not having a vote makes it more difficult, but then, if I didn’t like a challenge I wouldn’t be running against a 10-year incumbent.

Internet Declaration Highlights SOPA/PIPA Legacy

Ahead of Independence Day in the United States, groups are banding together to highlight principles behind the free and open internet. Entrepreneurs and startups are vital players in the internet economy, and should make their voices heard as the discussion evolves on these critical issues that impact internet culture and commerce.

A coalition representing advocacy groups, civil society organizations, companies, academics, and individuals have launched a “declaration of internet freedom” at www.internetdeclaration.org/freedom. The groups highlight five principles: expression, access, openness, innovation, and privacy.

Startups can take this opportunity to provide feedback on Techdirt, reddit, Cheezburger, and Github.

Nearly six months after the blackout protests and call campaigns derailed SOPA and PIPA, users across the web are coming together to remind lawmakers that these efforts weren’t a one-time groundswell. Startups have a great deal at stake in the open internet discussion and entrepreneurs and innovators should take this opportunity to let the community know about their concerns.

Marvin Ammori: One of Fast Company’s Most Creative People

Marvin Ammori was just named number 32 on Fast Company’s “100 most creative people in business” for his stewardship of the takedown of SOPA and PIPA. We caught up with him to talk about SOPA, First Amendment in tech, and what it means to be a creative leader in a digital world.

So, you're on Fast Company's Creative Business list...?

Yes. It's great that Fast Company decided to feature the creativity of the anti-SOPA movement and it was obviously an honor to be chosen as the person to represent that creativity. There were millions of activists involved and perhaps hundreds of leaders in business, academia, entrepreneurship, cybersecurity, music, and civil liberties. 

The Internet itself is the world's greatest engine of creativity -- for speech, culture, and business. The anti-SOPA movement was organized much like the web itself, with loose networks and nodes through which lots of people could contribute their creative ideas, test them, and collaborate to make them a reality. Fast Company profiled me, but I was just one of many devoted people fighting the bills, so many of whom exhibited amazing creativity.

Tell us about what you did for the SOPA fight and why it was important.

To stop SOPA and PIPA from becoming law, you couldn't play the usual inside-the-Beltway DC game. You needed activists, organizers, lobbyists, lawyers, and a coalition of business, civil liberties groups, entrepreneurs, and just ordinary citizens who rely on the Internet. 

I am a First Amendment lawyer. What I could do was interpret the statute as confidently as any of the opposing lawyers, and to analyze the First Amendment implications and problems. I also have experience working on public campaigns for Internet policy issues. So, while the other side would explain what the law did inaccurately, I could provide the right analysis, explain it clearly and simply to allies, congressional staff, and the general public. I was not the only lawyer fighting to stop SOPA, and we all learned a lot collaborating with one another.

Beyond the lawyers, other people were experts in cybersecurity (Paul Vixie), or handled the lobbying (Public Knowledge among others) and public activism (Fight for the Future, Demand Progress, Electronic Frontier Foundation) and organized Silicon Valley entrepreneurs (Engine). They could all rely on my legal analysis, just as I could rely on their skills.

What other tech issues have first amendment implications?

Almost all of them. The Internet is our infrastructure for speech in the 21st Century. We need to ensure all Americans have access to high-speed, open Internet connections, wired and mobile, and that individuals (not Hollywood or the telcos) control how people can use those connections. So network neutrality, bandwidth caps, Internet-for-all initiatives. All of these will determine who can speak to whom in our society, with what tools, and whether they need permission, and from whom.

What’s next for you?

I am thinking through a project on the connection between policies that foster entrepreneurship and those that foster freedom generally (like freedom of speech). And I'm supposed to be writing a book. I will probably call Hamish Chandra, an Engine Advocacy advisor who is my creativity guru, to coach me on becoming as creative as the 32nd most creative person in business should always be.

http://ammorigroup.com/

@marvin_ammori

Hey. No SOPA. Remember?

We’ve got our eyes on this one: Form building startup Jotform.com, which hosts it’s domain on GoDaddy, was suspended two days ago by a U.S. government agency in the course of an investigation into content posted on Jotform’s site.

Jotform founder Aytekin Tank posted on their corporate blog defending Jotform and also directing users to move their forms to JotForm.net while the investigation is cleared up. Tank defended his site’s policing methods and results, saying, “This can happen to any site that allows public to post content. SOPA may not have passed, but what happened shows that it is already being practiced.” [emphasis added]

Tank also wrote an agitated post on Hacker News detailing his impatience at the U.S. Secret Service’s lethargy in responding to the case. He said; “I told them we are a web service with hundreds of thousands of users, so this is a matter of urgency, and we are ready to cooperate fully”.

We’re watching to see how this plays out. While there’s not a lot of information at present, it seems as if GoDaddy or the government or both may be dangerously close to the kinds of enforcement rules that were rejected with the shelving of SOPA and PIPA.

How the Internet Beat SOPA and PIPA: Advocacy in a Networked World (Part 1)

From our friend, Tina Lee, at ZeroDivide. Read more here.

Artists against SOPA/PIPA

We’re excited to be part of a letter put together by a handful of individuals within the creative community to highlight the harms of PIPA and SOPA, and their belief in continued openness of the Internet. These are musicians, actors, and authors that the vast majority of Americans have welcomed into their lives and by virtue, into their homes.

Like all of us, these artists are keenly aware of the harms posed by copyright infringement, but wish to highlight for lawmakers that this legislation -- which is being moved through Congress at an alarming pace -- goes too far, threatening an ecosystem they rely on to reach their current fans and find new ones.

At a time when music sales are at an all time high due to distribution methods that rely on the Internet, and entertainment spending across the board is up 15% over the last decade, it is important to remember that the web continues to open up new markets and new possibilities every day. And that our favorite content creators have been able to harness that power in ways that would never have been imaginable 20 years ago.

We all must urge the Senate and House to carefully consider the ramifications of their actions and engage everyone impacted by this legislation to ensure we are protecting rightsholders’ creations
and
the platforms they (and we) rely on.

Read their letter. Call your Senator.

Censorship Around the World

While we’ve been fighting SOPA and PIPA, other countries around the world are also waging battles against the dire consequences of internet censorship.

The oppressive regime in Belarus set a new law into effect today which tightens the already strict regulation of internet use by making it illegal for Belarussians to visit foreign websites.  The Eastern European country established an extreme level of control over internet use last year when it issued Presidential Decree No. 60 , under which ISPs are required to block access to certain types of content and specific URLs – which are so far not disclosed to the public.  A similar, US version of this legislation – the Communications Decency Act of 1996 -   sparked controversy in the mid-90’s and was eventually overturned for violating First Amendment rights.

The new law is ostensibly to regulate online commerce – that is, making sure only domestic domains are used to provide online services – and violating it will result in a misdemeanor with a fine not to exceed the equivalent of about $125.  However, the implications could be much more serious than a slap on the wrist and a small fine.  The law requires that internet cafes and individuals providing internet access to other parties be responsible for any illegal browsing or e-commerce, and failure to report illegal usage of foreign sites could result in the business being shut down.   This kind of excessive punishment essentially discourages public internet use.  The government also has authorization to change and add to the list of banned sites – a level of governmental control that civil rights groups are distressed by ( Freedom House rates Belarus’ press freedom “not free” with “substantial political censorship”).

Meanwhile, Spain has passed anti-piracy legislation remarkably similar to the SOPA bill. Under the new Sinde law , a special commission will be formed to react to copyright infringement complaints made by rightsholders.  Slightly less draconian than SOPA, the websites will have ten days to remove the infringing material before being shut down. However, the bill has generated major opposition in Spain to what people see as a misleading law enacted for the benefit of Hollywood.

These battles mark crucial junctions for the future of open internet.  Just as the rejection of the Communications Decency Act was a pivotal moment in the creation of an unrestricted and dynamic internet landscape back in 1996, laws like Decree No. 60, Sinde, and SOPA/PIPA could set the tone for a more closed, stifled, and creatively impoverished world wide web.  

SOPA Markup on Hold. Now What?

In an unexpected move this morning, the House Judiciary Committee voted to suspend the markup of the hotly-contested Stop Online Piracy Act until the "next reasonable business day." To the 10,180 of you who (as of this writing) have made phone calls to your respective legislators, consider the beginning of this post a hearty, well-deserved congratulatory pat on the back.

The good news is that we now have more time to sway more hearts and minds on the committee and in the Congress and educate them as to why SOPA is such bad legislation in its current form.

The bad news is, the next meeting could be as early as Tuesday.

Let's keep the pressure on. Your voice is working. We heard that loud and clear in the halls of Congress this week. Now is the time to double down, make another phone call and let Congress know that as it stands right now, we stand united against SOPA and for finding a new way forward.

You can make a call right now at engineadvocacy.org/voice and now is the perfect time to let Congress know you won't stand for an internet that is easily censored and made insecure.

Thank you for your work so far, and for the work we all will do over the next weeks and months. The tide is turning in our favor, so stand up, keep fighting, and together we can protect the this essential resource in our lives.

UPDATE: Chairman Smith has scheduled the next round of markup for next Wednesday, December 21st according to multiple sources.

Internet Censorship in Malaysia

We’ve heard through third parties that there have been a number of inquiries from both the Malaysian government and in-country press expressing disapproval for our having included their nation in our ad on Wednesday. They object to being listed along with China and Iran as example governments who have been known to censor Internet traffic within their borders.

We included Malaysia in this list because it recently ordered various sites to be blocked for copyright reasons without meaningful due process for the affected sites -- just as the current versions of SOPA and PIPA in the United States would propose to do.

The Malaysian government's desire to stop large-scale, commercial piracy is an admirable goal, and one that we agree with, but site blocking is not the right way to do it -- it censors legal content unnecessarily (like the legitimate artists who use sites Megaupload to distribute their works); it is ineffective; and it threatens the security and integrity of the Internet.

By putting Malaysia in between China and Iran in that sentence, we did not mean to imply that its level of censorship and repression of free expression is akin to theirs. That would be a false comparison. To our knowledge, Malaysia's action in this particular instance of copyright is a break from their history of fostering ICT development.

It is our hope that Malaysia will take steps to ensure it has no place on this list.

Stand with Tech Entrepreneurs; Call Congress now to Stop SOPA

Today, 17 Web luminaries sent a letter to Congress opposing SOPA - the Internet censoring, innovation killing copyright legislation.

Will you stand with them and call Congress now.

Please spread the word to friends too - SOPA is heading for a committee vote tomorrow, so time is of the essence. The founders' letter will run as print ads, full page in today's New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Washington Times, Roll Call, The Hill, Politico, and CQ. You will not be able to pick up a paper in the DC area (or, really, many other places) without reading this letter. There will also be an online ad on CNET, TechCrunch, Gigaom, and Mashable, and Politico already has a story up. The ads point to a call Congress alert run by Engine Advocacy: http://stopthewall.us/

Tumblr Staff: SOPA Update

staff:

This weekend, we hosted a meeting at Tumblr HQ with top technology companies, politicians and advocacy groups to coordinate our effort to reform or prevent the well-intentioned but deeply flawed Stop Online Piracy Act from becoming law. You guys have already made a huge impact in Washington, but...

Benetech: Why I'm Scared of SOPA

So, we shouldn’t have anything to fear from a bill entitled “Stop Online Piracy Act,” right? Unfortunately, that’s not the case.

Read more at Beneblog

Keep the Web #OPEN

One of the main criticisms Hollywood has levied at Silicon Valley throughout the SOPA/PIPA debate is "Hey, it's not a perfect bill but it's not like you guys are offering better solutions."

The esteemed gentleman from California (and a few friends) beg to differ.

Today, Congressman Darrell Issa launched KeepTheWebOPEN.com, a site on which he invites public comment on his proposed Online Protection and Enforcement of Digital Trade Act, which is envisioned as a more sensible option to protect copyright online by using international trade laws as enforcement mechanisms.

You can visit the website, read the proposed bill in full and add your voice to what you would like to see in the proposed legislation at the same time. So take a look, and do what you can to keep the web #OPEN.