Wikipdia goes on strike to protest European law that threatens Internet



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Who tried to access Wikipedia in parts of Europe this Wednesday 3, could not see any article.

When accessing the Spanish, Italian or Polish version of Wikipedia this Wednesday, the user is confronted with a letter from the site editors asking that European parliamentarians do not approve the " Directive on Copyright ", with special criticism of current articles 13 and 11

" We want to continue to offer open, free, collaborative and verifiable free work ", says the text on the first page of Wikipedia in Spanish. "If the proposal is approved in its current version, actions like sharing an item of news on social networks or access via a search engine would become more complicated on the Internet, Wikipedia would be in danger. "

Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, is one of the most committed activists in the campaign against the Copyright Directive. On Twitter, he explained that each regional version of Wikipedia has its own editors, that the strike initiative was taken voluntarily, and is not mandatory for all versions of the world – so the Brazilian Wikipedia is still on the air [19659002] The site will remain off the air in EU countries until the end of the vote of the law, scheduled for Thursday afternoon, 5, according to TechCrunch.

The Copyright Directive proposes that the copyrighted work be protected by the copyright law of the country of origin of the copyright. the protected work. a new way of regulating the circulation of copyright-protected content on the web, with the aim of combating piracy. But it has been seen as a tool of prior censorship by freedom of expression activists on the web

The main reason for concern is an article in the text approved by a parliamentary commission a month ago. Article 13, also known as "download filtering," requires that any platform receiving user downloads – such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and forums in general – be responsible for monitoring and incoming data filtering

This is more or less what YouTube is already doing with any video that is placed on its platform, always watching users trying to download pirated movies or protected songs, ready to take off or prevent the content download that violates these rules. The measure would be mandatory for almost all sites if the law is pbaded.

Another controversial point is Article 11, which defines what is called the "bond fee". The stretch requires platforms like Facebook and Google to pay the media and media index links – which Spain has already attempted to end in 2014, resulting in the closure of Google News activities in the country .

Consequences [19659002] A group of 70 experts and activists – including Internet parent Tim Berners-Lee and President of Mozilla Mitchell Baker – sign a manifesto that highlights all the problems of this proposal in the way it was approved a month and how he can become a law this week.

In theory, the Copyright Directive can help prevent plagiarism and fight against piracy. But as the 70 experts write, the problem lies in how the proposal is drafted – particularly the controversial article 13, the "reportage".

"No version of the text clearly or consistently defines the Internet platforms they will have to follow," says the letter. "The resulting uncertainty will allow online platforms to leave Europe and prevent them from offering services to European customers."

The European Commission added that if the Copyright Directive is approved in its present form, it will not be affected because it does not fall into the definition of platforms that give access to large amounts of unauthorized protected content 'but covered by commonly used licenses.

But for the founder of the virtual encyclopedia, this is not enough. "The Wikipedia community is not so limited as letting the rest of the Internet suffer just because we are big enough to try to please ourselves." Justice Counts, "writes Wales on Twitter in response to the European Commission

What Does Brazil Have to Do With It?

All of this seems far from Brazil, but this is not the case. The European Parliament has recently pbaded a law on the protection of personal data known as GDPR.The legislation has made the major Internet services of the moment – including Netflix, Spotify, Facebook, Instagram, Amazon and many others – update their terms of use, including for Brazilian users.

In addition, the GDPR approval in Europe of many countries to do something In Brazil, a Senate committee has just approved a data protection bill directly inspired by the GDPR In short, the Copyright Directive may have consequences for the whole world and not only for Europe. [19659002]

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