To say SOPA is a highly unpopular act would arguably be one of the understatements of the year, and many companies are not shown to be standing against the act in the same way as the general public. However, Kaspersky can be considered an exception to the rule due to their approach, which was first reported on the Russian website Izvestia, and quickly posted on TorrentFreak after this.
Internet users who are aware of its existence, but now companies are also shown to be opposing it, as TorrentFreak reports about Kaspersky.
For those unaware, Kaspersky is one of many companies providing anti-virus software for computers. Based in Russia, the company is a part of the Business Software Alliance, or "BSA". Well, they were anyway. They have announced their withdrawal from the alliance over its approval of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), with their membership to be revoked on January 2012.
The company officially said that the SOPA act will hurt both innovation and consumers. As a side-note, the BSA contains companies such as Intel, Microsoft, and Apple. A statement from the company reads as follows:
“Kaspersky has not participated in drafting the bill, nor participated in the debate on SOPA, and does not support this initiative."
Kaspersky"s stance on the matter is rather appealing to see in the industry when so many massive companies, such as Apple and Microsoft, are unwilling to oppose the act despite the controversy surrounding it. While TorrentFreak may not be the most unbiased of sources, the interests of many American people are likely conflicting with those of SOPA, so it is still important enough.