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Apple, Nintendo, Microsoft, Sony and EA Pull SOPA Support

Five major gaming companies are now allying themselves against the bill that would allow the U.S. to censor the internet.

The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) has been extremely controversial since it was introduced. Essentially, if put into effect, the SOPA would allow the U.S. government to eliminate advertising on, limit business to, or completely block websites that allegedly infringe on copyrights.

Initially the bill was supported by a great deal of companies but most of the big names - at least the big names in gaming - are pulling their support. The change in stance is almost certainly in response to consumer response, which has been extremely negative in most cases. Boycotts, petitions and even threats have been issued and seem to have had some effect.

In the last week or so, Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony Electronics, EA and Apple have pulled their names off of the SOPA, but there are plenty of supporters including the Entertainment Software Association. As Joystiq's Griffin McElroy points out though, every company belonging to the ESA has pulled their support, so it seems likely the ESA will follow suit.

Source: Joystiq

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