Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) president Hal Halpin recently sat down with Destructoid to talk about the dangers consumers face at the hands of corporate interests and by politicians creating new regulations and laws that stifle free speech and invade our privacy. We'll update our story later when the full interview goes live, but this quote from Halpin deals specifically with the issue of CISPA and laws like it:

The Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) has issued a call to action concerning the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act, or CISPA. We've talked about CISPA here, and while it's not quite as overreaching as SOPA, PIPA, or ACTA, the bill is so vague in its language that it could prove to be dangerous if interpreted the wrong way by individuals and groups that don't give two shakes about privacy, Internet freedom and free speech.

Recently a contingent of highly motivated constituents went to Washington D.C., led by the Entertainment Consumer Association’s Hal Halpin and Jenn Mercurio, to talk to lawmakers about policies that affect consumers such as PIPA, SOPA, ACTA, and more. Josh Hughes, Lead Game Designer at Kaizen Games, was one of those people, and below he shares his experiences. This article originally appeared on the Kaizen Games Blog and is reprinted below with their kind permission.

Today members of the Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) and a handful of supporters are in Washington to talk to member of Congress and their staff about the issues the group cares about. While the ECA champions a lot of causes the biggest issue may very well be the most recent - HR 4204: The Video Game Health Labeling Act of 2012. Since it's on the ECA's mind, you can bet that the bill sponsored by Rep. Baca (D) and Rep. Wolf (R) will be a hot topic.

The Entertainment Consumer Association (ECA) has issued an action alert, a call to arms for gamers everywhere to let their elected officials know that The Video Game Health Labeling Act of 2012 wasn't acceptable in 2009 and is not acceptable now. Rep. Joe Baca (D CA-43) has teamed up with Rep. Frank Wolf (R VA-10) to reintroduce a bill that is very familiar to gamers.

The Connecticut State Senate is considering a bill that would add taxes to digital goods. The "stated purpose of the bill, is "to include digital movies, books, music, ringtones, audio and video works and similar downloadable products as subject to the sales and use tax." If passed, the bill would take effect July 1, 2012, and would apply to sales occurring on or after that date.

Major League Gaming announced that professional Halo player Dave "Walshy" Walsh will retire from the Pro Circuit, and will move into a new role as a commentator at MLG events. Walsh will join commentators Bravo and Gandhi at the Winter Championships in Columbus on March 23-25.

The Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) has issued an action alert asking ECA members and the general gaming public to contact their local representatives to find out if the terms of many End User License Agreements (EULA) are actually legal in their respective states. Find the Action Alert below:

The Entertainment Consumer Association has issued an action alert, a call to arms to let lawmakers in Canada know that C-11, an act to amend the Copyright Act, must remove a provision that makes "jailbreaking" illegal. While the amendment to existing copyright law in Canada isn't as strict or over reaching as SOPA and PIPA, it does contain some questionable provisions that could hurt consumers.

Electric Playground recently caught up with Hal Halpin, President and founder of the Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA), to talk about the online battle to stop the passage of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). Halpin talks about how the online protest last week slowed down the momentum of both SOPA and PIPA, and why these bills aren't quite dead yet.

Check out the video to your left.

[Full Disclosure: GamePolitics is an ECA publication.]

Andrew Eisen gives us a visual representation of how gamers felt when they heard the news that the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) was supporting the Stop Online Piracy Act. Is this the thanks gamers get from the trade group representing the video game industry after all of their hard work in Brown v. EMA?

We'll let you judge for yourselves. This is probably the best video Andrew has ever made, in my humble opinion. Watch it to you left and be sure to stop by Andrew's YouTube Channel to subscribe.

Walshy Addresses SOPA/PIPA

By Dave Walsh, ECA Pro Gaming Chapter Pres.

There are still many people out there that don’t know about, or are misinformed regarding two very concerning pieces of legislation, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), and Protect IP Act (PIPA). The names of these bills sound noble enough, but the effects that they will have if passed will be devastating.

On January 18 at 8:00 am ET GamePolitics and other ECA-owned websites will go dark in protest of the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Acts. We are proud to stand with an estimated 7,000 web sites and organizations to show our opposition to the government’s efforts to curtail free speech and innovation in the name of protecting the interests of corporations and lobbyists. We feel that there are better ways to fight online piracy and the sale of counterfeit goods without comprising innovation, free speech, and the integrity of the Internet.

On Friday the Entertainment Consumer Association (ECA) sent out a PSA to its partners and friends asking them to join them in the fight against the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act - two anti-piracy and rogue web site laws that fight illicit copyrights infringement and counterfeit goods at the cost of free speech, fair use and the integrity of the Internet. We posit that free speech will always be a more valuable commodity than the profits of corporations and special interests and should always be protected.

On behalf of GamePolitics and the ECA, I wish all of our readers a safe and happy holiday - whether you celebrate Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, some other holiday, no holiday at all, etc.. We will be back on Monday with bells on!

On behalf of Hal, Heather, Jennifer, Michael, Andrew, Brett, and the rest - Happy Holidays!

- James Fudge, Managing Editor, GamePolitics.com

Left-leaning political blog DailyKOS joins the editorial pages of the New York Times and Los Angeles Times in opposition of the House's Stop Online Piracy Act and the Senate's Protect IP Act. In a post titled "Congress is close to destroying the internet (no hyperbole)," DailyKOS says that it is not hyperbole when they say that lawmakers, big Pharmaceutical companies, and the recording, and movie industries are out to destroy the internet.

GamePolitics is going dark today in observance of Thanksgiving and boy howdy do gamers like us have oodles to be thankful for this year.  Fall 2011 is jam-packed with more awesome video games than most will ever have the time (or money) to play.  See the bottom of Leland Yee’s recent “Don’t buy these video games” press release to parents for a few good suggestions.

A new article over at TechDirt penned by the Entertainment Consumer Association's Vice President and General Counsel, Jennifer Mercurio, explains why the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP are bad for everyone - especially gamers. Mercurio lays out what this means to everyday internet users when it comes to video performance and fair use in the first paragraph:

If you read our ECA Today newsletter then you probably heard on Friday that the Entertainment Consumer Association (ECA)  has backed pro-gamer Dave "Walshy" Walsh's special ECA Chapter dedicated to pro gamers and advocacy. Today the ECA made the official announcement, which you can read below in its entirety. We offer it to you without commentary because GamePolitics is an ECA publication.

The Entertainment Consumer Association (ECA) has issued an alert concerning a proposal before the Madison (Wisconsin) City Council that would force second-hand resellers to out sellers personal information in a database that local police would have access to. Obviously this is not a good idea - even in the name of tracking down criminals who steal and receive various goods - usually to fuel some type of addiction. The ECA's letter to members follows:

The Entertainment Consumer Association issued a press release today detailing new discounts it is offering membership holders. The press release is provided below, without comment from us for obvious reasons (GamePolitics is an ECA publication.):

THE ECA HELPS GAMERS ‘PRESS START’ ON A NEW SEASON WITH AN ARRAY OF NEW MEMBERSHIP DISCOUNTS

While everyone else is ranting and raving about Diablo III and having to be "always connected" to Battle.net to play it - even in single player - our very own Andrew Eisen takes a different approach with the following heartfelt letter.

If Blizzard listens, this could be the best Christmas ever! Check out his heartwarming plea to Blizzard to your left or visit YouTube.

If you missed our mention of it on Friday, the Entertainment Consumer Association (ECA) has begun a letter writing campaign to challenge Bill S. 978, better known as the "anti-streaming bill" that is being pushed in the U.S. Senate. The new message from the ECA can be found below in its entirety, but I urge you to visit action.theeca.com or the ECA's Facebook group to get involved, because if you don't you may find yourself impacted by it after posting a YouTube video or while engaging in some other seemingly innocuous activity:

The Entertainment Consumer Association (ECA) has issued a call to arms to its members and the gaming community at large, urging everyone that will listen that Bill S. 978 (the anti-streaming law) is bad for everyone. The law has the potential to affect everyone - from YouTube video posters that make gameplay videos to Netflix users that share their account information. You can check out the alert here and send a letter to your Senators voicing your strong objection to this bill.

The alert can also be found below:

In an interview with Destructoid, ECA big cheese Hal Halpin discusses why gamers should worry about S.978, a bill that would make streaming copyrighted material a felony.

“I understand the intent that the legislators and trade associations have with the bill,” said Halpin, “but it’s so broad that it casts a very wide net, including people who innocently post video captures of their gameplay! Alone, that represents a huge community of people.”

“This bill, as written, will apply to anyone who plays and posts their gameplay online, which is a huge percentage of gamers. It could also apply to pro gamers who stream their gameplay for fans as easily as it applies to companies whose entire existence relies on streaming technology (i.e. Steam, Netflix, Gamefly/D2D, Major League Gaming, EA/Origin, OnLive and Gaikai, etc.).”

The Entertainment Consumer Association issued a statement this week thanking its legal team and other individuals that helped prepare the amicus brief and the consumer petition that was submitted to the Supreme Court in November in support of the EMA's side of Brown v. EMA. The group thanked gamers and ECA members that took the time to sign the petition, legal teams that wrote the amicus brief and its various legal advisors that put everything together. Full statement below:

"As many of you know, earlier this week, the United States Supreme Court held in favor of the Entertainment Merchants Association in Brown v EMA, the so-called “violent video games” case. This is a huge achievement for all involved, especially Paul Smith of Jenner & Block.

ECA would again like to thank all of its members and the general public who signed the Consumer Petition. We would also like to thank and congratulate our partners in the Consumers Amicus Brief:

Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello tells IndustryGamers that today's decision from the Supreme Court on California's violent videogame law is a win for everyone. Last year Riccitiello expressed concern that publishers would be forced to ship different versions of the same title if new rules were implemented in California and other states. He feared state level bureaucracies that define what’s marketable in each state. Today's ruling makes that less likely to happen.

"Everybody wins on this decision – the Court has affirmed the Constitutional rights of game developers; adults keep the right to decide what’s appropriate in their houses; and store owners can sell games without fear of criminal prosecution," Riccitiello told IndustryGamers in a statement today.

The Entertainment Consumer Association (ECA) issued a short statement this morning expressing its strong approval of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brown v. EMA.

"We are thrilled by today's news," said Jennifer Mercurio, VP & General Counsel of the Entertainment Consumers Association. "We had hoped that we would see this decision, and it's been a long time coming. That being said, there will probably be one or two legislators who attempt to test these new parameters, and the ECA will continue to fight for the rights of entertainment consumers."

The Entertainment Consumers Association plans to issue a longer statement after reviewing the decision more thoroughly.

[GamePolitics is an ECA publication.]

Entertainment Consumer Association president Hal Halpin offers his personal (note: not ours) opinion on the timing of the Brown v EMA (formerly Schwarzenegger v EMA) Supreme Court decision over at IGN. There has been much speculation that a decision will be released this week, and Halpin has his own predictions about it:

"Despite law maker Leland Yee’s prognostications, no one really knows when we’ll get the answer, but my money is on this Thursday.

The Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) and Red Bull have teamed up to give anyone who signs up for a membership via the RedBull Site a one-year membership with the ECA, free of charge. Membership is normally $19.99 annually. The offer is open to gamers of all ages who are residents of the U.S. or Canada. Full press release below: