To begin with, follow this link. Become educated about what is about to happen to you and sign the petitions to stop it. Stupid government is being stupid and needs to be told to not be stupid. I hope this doesn't pass. If it does, I hope it gets shot down in the courts and everyone who voted for it gets kicked out of office ASAP.
I'm really tired of the entertainment industry moaning and complaining because it's not being allowed to rape people has hard and as deep as it wants to. Most of the stuff mainstream entertainment produces is not only rehashed and shitty, it's also overpriced. If you're pissed off because you're losing money, it's not because of pirates. If pirating is stopped, you won't make any more money than you do now. In fact, I suspect you'll make less.
In the meantime, people who are producing new and interesting things will find ways to get this to the masses without you. Even now, a lot of bands are bypassing corporate entertainment and dealing directly with their fans. They may not sell to as many people this way, but they maintain more of their profit margin, have a greater level of control over the direction of their art, and don't get overexposed to the extent that everyone begins to hate them.
I think a good example of this comes in the form of webcomics. When comic books began to get really overpriced and predictable, a lot of people turned to online comics. Many of the more popular lines were able to support themselves based on fan donations. Some of these comics later became graphic novels, but only after they already had a very strong fan following. The marketing was done by the artist, not by a company. The direction of the comic remained in the artist's hands.
Do I support artists being robbed of their intellectual property? No. Hell no. Of course not. At the same time . . . I know that one of the strongest ways, in fact, probably the only way to really be successful and stay that way in today's market is to have an active and loyal fanbase. These fans will do artwork. They will write fanfic. They will make up songs, do tributes, cosplay, have RPGs, and any number of other things to show their support of your story/music/whathave you.
You can either allow this and watch as your fanbase grows and becomes stronger . . . or you can assert your legal right to be the only person allowed to mess with your stuff . . . and watch as your fanbase slows in growth or just dies off altogether.
Now, if this bill passes . . . your fanfic over Sam/Dean will be taken down. Your parody song about The Doctor will be taken down, your art work showing Jaime kissing Brienne will be taken down. The website that hosted it will be taken down as well. This will suck for you. It will suck even more for the artists who created this stuff and hoped to inspire their fans to stick with them.
OH, but so long as the corporations get that extra ivory back scratcher, it's all good. I wonder if the fact that I just made a Simpsons ref will be illegal now?
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