As GoDaddy.com continues to get pressure over its stand on the Stop Online Piracy Act, we see the power of a boycott in the online space. First, the registrar supported the bill, stridently. Then, after the initial outcry from various free speech advocacy groups and major online clients like Wikipedia, GoDaddy backed off and said that it would not support the bill in its current form.
This response was seen as tepid and yesterday’s boycott went on as scheduled. Now, GoDaddy is officially opposing the bill and making no bones about the boycott being the reason:
We have observed a spike in domain name transfers, which are running above normal rates and which we attribute to GoDaddy’s prior support for SOPA, which was reversed. GoDaddy opposes SOPA because the legislation has not fulfilled its basic requirement to build a consensus among stake-holders in the technology and Internet communities. Our company regrets the loss of any of our customers, who remain our highest priority, and we hope to repair those relationships and win back their business over time.
GoDaddy says it also opposes the PROTECT IP Act, which is the Senate version of the bill.
Also, Business Insider reports that three big names in gaming: Sony Electronics, Nintendo, and Electronic Arts, have dropped support for SOPA.
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