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Does the SOPA act cover people who only download or even only watch videos online?

• Another thing I was wondering about regarding SOPA:  I was told that the legislation was designed to target distributors who stream videos online and who copy and distribute videos online to sell for a profit and give them the same penalties as those who copied video cassettes in the past.  I was wondering how does SOPA address Internet users who either a.  Download videos online but do not distribute it for profit and do not upload any content on youtube or any other video source  b.  Internet users who have never downloaded any material and never redistributed any material online and never uploaded videos but rather have only watched videos on youtube, megavideo, novamov, wisevid and sidereel, but not the Pirate Bay-, i.e. they have only watched videos but never downloaded or uploaded any videos Much appreciation for anyone who has info on these issues as well

• Answer:

  First, streaming is downloading. The only difference is that you're watching it as you download it. Title I of SOPA targets distributors of copyrighted media. The US Attorney General is given the power to go after "foreign infringing sites" (i.e. sites which commit or facilitate copyright infringement), while copyright holders are given a private right of action to sue sites "dedicated to the theft of U.S. property." Title II of SOPA deals with streaming of copyrighted material. Generally, it amends US copyright law so that copyright infringement explicitly includes the public performance of copyrighted content by means of "digital transimission" (i.e. streaming). Ignoring possible defenses, this could mean, for example, that you may be in violation of SOPA if you play a YouTube clip of a movie at a school gathering. Assuming the movie clip is copyrighted material (nearly everything is), then playing the clip at the school gathering would likely count as a public performance. So, it is possible for SOPA to impact people, even if they have never uploaded and distributed the copyrighted material for profit. Lastly, even if SOPA is not enacted, watching or streaming copyrighted material may already constitute copyright infringement under current law. For example, if a website allows users to download or stream copyrighted content, and a user does download or stream copyrighted content, then that user could be liable for direct infringement of a copyright. By downloading or streaming the file, the user necessarily reproduces (i.e. makes a copy) of the copyrighted content on their computer. This is copyright infringement. Thus, you are not necessarily free from potential litigation even if you have not distributed content for profit, or you only downloaded or streamed content, or you have never uploaded anything.