Senator majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has announced the Protect IP Act (PIPA) vote has been postponed in the Senate. Reid was a sponsor of the bill, which was scheduled for a vote on January 24, 2012.
“In light of recent events, I have decided to postpone Tuesday’s vote on the PROTECT I.P. Act,” wrote Reid in an official statement. “There is no reason that the legitimate issues raised by many about this bill cannot be resolved. Counterfeiting and piracy cost the American economy billions of dollars and thousands of jobs each year, with the movie industry alone supporting over 2.2 million jobs. We must take action to stop these illegal practices.”
“I encourage him to continue engaging with all stakeholders to forge a balance between protecting Americans’ intellectual property, and maintaining openness and innovation on the internet. We made good progress through the discussions we’ve held in recent days, and I am optimistic that we can reach a compromise in the coming weeks.”
This postponement comes only three days after Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA) announced that the House had shelved the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), the House counterpart to PIPA.
