Wikipedia has started a 24hr blackout in protest against US anti-piracy laws that it claims could "fatally damage the free and open internet" and "severely limit people’s access to online information". The English version of the site has closed access to the online encyclopaedia to highlight its opposition to the proposed SOPA and PIPA laws that are being voted on in Washington later this month.

Wikipedia joins an impressive list of sites such as Google and Flickr all preparing to join up for a day of darkness to show their opposition for the controversial proposals. Critics are suggesting that SOPA would impact on any site that included links, making them pretty much defunct and liable to government shut down.

So what if the laws do go ahead? What will it mean for us all and is it really worth all the hoo ha? SOPA is proposed as a way to make it easier for intellectual property owners to take down requests or stop payments to websites that infringe copyright laws such as hosting films, streaming music or selling fake goods – so far, so good. But critics claim that the laws will give too much power to content owners and allow them to demand ‘allegedly’ offending sites are are taken down or links removed, adverts withdrawn and payment services like PayPal stopped within five days of a complaint. What’s more, the act grants significant powers to the U.S Government, which has caused opponents to be concerned about censorship and withdrawal of material it deems inappropriate.

Whilst it’s clear that piracy and misuse of content is costing us all dear, the implications that SOPA could actually encourage more rogue marketing and restrict the sharing of information has worrying consequences and may impact on the way we all use and interact online – is this a solution we are willing to accept or should we all stand with Wikipedia and Google against the legislation?

Still confused? Here’s a little gif made by http://theoatmeal.com/ 

Join the conversation and let us know what you think.