Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand on PIPA and SOPA: Time to Take a Step Back and Start Over

Listen up, Wikipedia, Google, and all you other folks who shut down websites and changed your Facebook profile pic in solidarity! Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand heard you loud and clear and said this morning that it's time to take a step back and reevaluate PIPA and SOPA.

This times well with reports that that's actually happening. The future of the legislation was already looking grim yesterday, and, as of this morning, it was determined that SOPA will be redrafted, and a key vote for the PIPA bill was postponed.

Gillibrand went to the Internet today to make some statements about the controversial anti-piracy legislation that has Internet-lovers (and, you know, free-speech lovers), up in arms. On Twitter, she wrote: "Congress must take a step back & start over to work to curb online piracy & allow tech cos to thrive. NY tech community must be at the table."

She posted a longer statement on her Facebook page, saying that "it is clear this proposal will not create consensus on how to crack down on the real problem of online theft that threatens tens of thousands of New York jobs in a balanced way that ensures our tech companies will continue to flourish."

Gillibrand, one of the initial sponsors of the legislation, said it's time to start over, and New York stakeholders must be at the table -- y'know, "media companies, music and film companies, Silicon Valley and Silicon Alley here in New York." We don't want any "unintended consequences," she said.

Earlier in the week, Chuck Schumer, her counterpart in the Senate and also a sponsor, said he wanted to see both sides -- the content providers and the tech companies -- come together.

Read Gillibrand's full statement:

Whether passing the 9/11 Health Bill, repealing DADT, or my call to action for women, I have always urged New Yorkers to make their voices heard. There has been an outpouring of democracy in action over the last several weeks on PIPA & SOPA. While many of my colleagues and I have worked hard to address concerns with the current bill, it is clear this proposal will not create consensus on how to crack down on the real problem of online theft that threatens tens of thousands of New York jobs in a balanced way that ensures our tech companies will continue to flourish. It is time for Congress to take a step back and start over with both sides bringing their solutions to the table to find common ground towards solving this problem. New talks between stakeholders -- media companies, music and film companies, Silicon Valley and Silicon Alley here in New York is a critically needed step forward. Make no mistake, we must act to protect the theft of intellectual property that costs our economy billions in revenue -- but we must get it right without unintended consequences that could stifle the internet.

[SamTLevin / @SamTLevin]

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