Spain approves SOPA-style piracy law

Websites hosting illegal downloads could close within days

A tough new anti-piracy measure that could force ISPs to block offending websites has been approved by the Spanish government.
Spain’s legislation creates a new government body – called the intellectual property commission – that has the authority to prevent access to entire websites if they are deemed to be in breach of copyright law.

The measure is similar to the divisive SOPA bill, which is currently under consideration in the US, though Spain’s Sinde Law does not give copyright holders the power to directly shut down websites as SOPA could.
Instead, rights holders will contact the intellectual property commission and point out websites alleged to be offering access to illicit entertainment downloads. The government body hopes to reach a decision within ten days of receiving a notice of copyright infringement, and then can pass the case onto a judge to rule whether a website should be shut down.
Like the proposed measures in the US, Sinde Law has proven to be divisive.

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