Microsoft applauds release of Best Practice Guidelines for Ad Networks to Address Piracy and Counterfeiting

Posted by Fred Humphries
Vice President, U.S. Government Affairs, Microsoft

Today, we released Best Practice Guidelines for Ad Networks to Address Piracy and Counterfeiting. The Best Practices represent an important step in addressing the problem of display advertisements that appear on websites dedicated to copyright piracy and the sale of counterfeit goods. Microsoft – along with other leading technology companies – participated in the multi-year effort with the White House to develop these best practices, which will be implemented in the coming months.

As both a creator of copyrighted works and a provider of online services, including advertising services, Microsoft understands the problems faced by copyright owners subject to massive infringement and the need to ensure that innovation can flourish online. It’s been our experience that a notice-and-takedown mechanism like the one envisioned by these Best Practices can be an effective means to address online infringement. An appropriate notice-and-takedown system – that requires rights holders to identify specific instances of infringement and online services to respond promptly and appropriately to such notices – can address infringement while still respecting critical values such as fair use, privacy, free speech and the freedom to innovate.

Microsoft is pleased to be a part of this collective effort to combat piracy, and to help ensure a healthy advertising ecosystem. We applaud the Administration’s leadership on intellectual property and innovation, as well as the public-private collaboration that made these Best Practices a reality.

To learn more, visit www.whitehouse.gov/blog.