Viacom, owners of Neopets support SOPA.

[GlitteryCupcake]

Here is a link to an article that contains Viacom's Support Pitch Video: http://www.webpronews.com/viacoms-ridiculous-sopa-support-pitch-video-2011-11?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+webpronews%2Fall+%28WebProNews%3A+Index+Feed%29

 

I encourage anyone to read the entire article, but here is one highlight from it: "It should be noted that Viacom’s view on piracy is not in dispute here. If you get caught downloading a movie you haven’t paid for, you should have to pay the consequences. The problem is, SOPA is not the way to go about it because it gives entirely too much power to the entertainment industry, which has been the major sticking point against SOPA all along.

 

Ironically enough, Viacom’s quarterly financial report has also been released, and after watching their sob story video, you’d think the company is on the verge of bankruptcy. Yeah, about that. A quick look at the document’s title reveals a much different outlook than the one the video presents:

 

VIACOM REPORTS DOUBLE-DIGIT GROWTH FOR FOURTH QUARTER AND FULL-YEAR FISCAL 2011"

 

 

Personally, I will refuse to spend any neocash, since it is real money. If I had a premium account, I would stop using the premium service as well. Will you do anything?

[Aalnius]

the sopa bill is ridiculous and i recently did a study into piracy as a part of my uni course and found frequent evidence that piracy not only doesn't cause massive damage to industries but in alot of cases helped to generate more sales.

also companies frequently use biased uncalculated statistics to say piracy is ruining their business when if they calculated them even slightly more accurately it shows a drastic difference.

by the way anyone that thinks im just a piracy supporter should know that im working towards getting a job in the games industry which is massively effected by piracy but i don't believe you should demonise the customers and try to squeeze them dry when many of the problems and root causes of piracy come from the companies themselves.

[GlitteryCupcake]

Aalnius, I agree with you completely. The bill IS ridiculous and is a product of corporate greed, while they would have us think it is for the public good.

Don't worry, I didn't think you were a piracy supporter at all. I think it's really cool that someone with your opinion is going to be a part of the gaming industry! I wish more people who are already in the industry had your mindset.

[hrtbrk]

It's not going to affect me on Neopets at all.

 

It's their choice to support the stopping of piracy, through SOPA or any other solution. Do I agree with it [sOPA]? HECK NO. But I would find it a bit odd if a company didn't support the stoppage of piracy in some sort of capacity.

 

SOPA isn't the way to do it, and it will never pass (allegedly Obama is going to veto), so I'm not worried.

 

We are already aware of Viacoms stance on the matter (and hypocrisy) but that's something they have the deal with and I'm not going to change things I enjoy because they have a chip on their shoulder.

 

I'm going to continue on playing (ARRGH MATEY!)

 

---

 

The Internet is probably the most important technological advancement of my lifetime. Its strength lies in its open architecture and its ability to allow a framework where all voices can be heard. Like the printing press before it (which states also tried to regulate, for centuries), it democratizes information, and thus it democratizes power. If we allow Congress to pass these draconian laws, we’ll be joining nations like China and Iran in filtering what we allow people to see, do, and say on the Web.

 

And we’re better than that.

— Adam Savage

[Maralie]

I'm planning on canceling my premium service pretty soon anyway, and since you have to do it over the phone, I'll definitely make a point of telling someone that Viacom's support of SOPA contributed to my decision to cancel. I don't buy NC anyway, but I'm certainly not about to start now. I understand that this is just another business decision for Viacom, but it's completely unethical and I think even small acts of resistance like this can count for something.

[lilshadowdweller]

I'm planning on canceling my premium service pretty soon anyway, and since you have to do it over the phone, I'll definitely make a point of telling someone that Viacom's support of SOPA contributed to my decision to cancel. I don't buy NC anyway, but I'm certainly not about to start now. I understand that this is just another business decision for Viacom, but it's completely unethical and I think even small acts of resistance like this can count for something.

 

I've purchased Neocash twice and only because I'm too lazy to go about and look up the NP clothing items and all that. It's just easier to get all your clothing needs done that way. :*

 

I haven't purchased it in 2 years now. I always knew Neopets was a business but Viacom's way of bringing in the whole clothing line always urked me. They gave us no prior warning, because they knew users would be upset by it. And we all know why the change was a must: they needed to profit from their free game. Like so many other games before it, they threw in little perks for users who paid in cash. Advantages in the games. Neat clothing which looked awesome compared to most of the NP ones. I wasn't big on supporting them for awhile. I'll play the free part, but that's it. It wasn't my choice to indirectly supposed Viacom - I was on Neopets before they owned it. My account was made universal for Viacom without much of a choice. *They gave you new rules, basically stating that if you refused to agree to the new terms (ie; making a universal account), you wouldn't be able to access your pets.* :(

 

Anyway, they can try and stop piracy all they want. However, when it comes to movies nowadays, they've become so cheap to buy I usually purchase them. I bought some Blu-Rays for $5.00! o_O You get a nice personal disc, lots of really cool features, ect.

 

But music? Yeah. I'm not buying into it. 99 cents doesn't seem like too much, unless you like as many songs as I do ...

 

SOPA is lame. Any company which supports them disgusts me equally. But since I don't advertise Neopets and don't pay for anything, I'm not gaining or losing anything by playing it. :)

[lovedwallflower]

well ive never bought NC nor paid for premium but if ever there was a time when i stuck to my pennies its this one. I am very much in disagreement with SOPA and therefore also with Viacom who are proving to be greedy corporate umm- people.

 

in other news, they lost to youtube when they sued them so - booya! here's more info: http://www.wired.com...yright-youtube/

[Naamah D.]

Would SOPA have any effect on Neopets itself? Because I'm going to keep playing.

[annikarose]

Unfortunately, I will probably still use NC, even though I'd frankly like to stop because of their support of SOPA. I buy it every once in awhile, so I don't contribute that much, but...

 

Obama also threatened to veto the National Defense Authorization Act, then ended up passing it with a signing statement (something George W used over and over again to change wording in bills so as to make it more to his liking). While the media coverage of SOPA means he's more likely to follow through on his veto, the relationship between Washington and corporations makes me nervous, so I would not be too surprised if it passed. :hmmph:

[April]

This is a huge wall of text and giving me a headache. I have no idea what any of this means.

 

Can someone please explain this in simple words please?

 

Sorry, not to sound rude. XD English is my second language and in contexts like this it confuses me, a lot.

[billpika_x8]

SOPA's author has made amends. However, I'm not sure what they are. I think they make the bill less harsh. :santa: Like a belated Christmas present!