Felony Streaming Bill Passes out of Judiciary

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved on a voice vote the Commercial Felony Streaming Act (S 978) with no amendments. The bill clarifies that it is a crime to stream pirated TV shows or movies.

It is the second bill in three weeks the committee has approved that attempts to take a bite out of the business of the online distribution of pirated TV shows and videos -- the committee approved the PROTECT IP Act three weeks ago. S.978 was introduced by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), John Cornyn (R-TX), and Christopher Coons (D-Delaware) last month. It is already a felony to download or upload that content, so the bill would just extend that to streaming, a recommendation made by White House Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator Victoria Espinel.