Peter Fries

The Honorable Patty Murray
The Honorable Maria Cantwell
393 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senators Murray & Cantwell:

I’m a writer and artist who has been working in the Washington State video game industry for over 18 years. Today I’m writing to you to express my concern over the “Protect IP Act”, or “PIPA” (S. 968) legislation. 

As someone who has been involved in intellectual property creation for years, IP content piracy is a concern I share with my employers and local industry. I cannot speak for my employer, nor do I, but for myself I find S. 968 (and its counterpart in the House, H.R. 3261, or “SOPA”) an over-reaching method of dealing with the problem of copyright infringement.

The industry that I work in, which is vital to the economy of our state, depends on a thriving and free online community of gamers and I don’t want to see either of these bills enacted to police user-generated content, live-streaming of game play, podcasting, or any number of ways that our fans have to express themselves, socialize online, and build on our work.

I’m at once concerned over the overly broad powers described in the Protect IP Act to infringe on individual creative liberties and unconvinced that the legislation would be effective in its intended purpose of stopping piracy of intellectual properties.

This legislation is very much not in the best interest of gamers or the game industry itself. I feel that it would threaten my livelihood, and more importantly, restrict my rights as a U.S. citizen.

I strongly urge you not to support this legislation, and to pledge to vote against it should it come up for consideration by the full Senate or any committee on which you serve.

Respectfully yours,

Peter Fries