Sherlock: Copyright laws will be balanced

Copyright laws to be signed into effect by Innovation Minister Sean Sherlock will not be used by big websites to “beat down” small ones.

Mr Sherlock rejected comparisons to the Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa) in the US, which opponents say threatens free speech and could force blogs or small websites to shut.

“I think people are interpreting this as us doing the bidding of the large corporations,” Mr Sherlock said in a Dáil debate on the ministerial order he intends to sign to introduce the laws without Dáil legislation.