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SOPA Countdown

A live counter of the time since the January 18, 2012 internet blackout — the protest that stopped SOPA and PIPA.

This counter marks the time since January 18, 2012 — the day thousands of websites, including Wikipedia and Reddit, went dark to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and its Senate companion PIPA. Within days, both bills were shelved. Contrary to a common misconception, SOPA did not pass; the blackout is widely credited with stopping it.

What SOPA was

SOPA was a 2011 US House bill aimed at online copyright infringement and counterfeit goods. Critics warned its broad measures — including DNS-level site blocking and cutting off payment and ad services to accused sites — threatened free expression and the technical foundations of the internet. PIPA was the parallel Senate bill.

The blackout that stopped it

On January 18, 2012, an unprecedented coordinated protest saw major sites go dark and millions contact their representatives. Support for the bills collapsed within days and both were withdrawn. It remains a landmark example of online civic action — the reason this site counts up from that date rather than down to a vote.

Guides about SOPA Countdown

SOPA & PIPA explained What SOPA Would Have Done to the Internet A factual look at what SOPA would have done to the internet: DNS blocking, search delisting, payment and ad cutoffs, and the security and free-speech risks critics warned about. 6 min read SOPA & PIPA explained What Was PIPA? The PROTECT IP Act Explained A clear explainer on the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA): the Senate anti-piracy bill of 2011, what it proposed, how it differed from SOPA, and why it was ultimately shelved. 6 min read SOPA & PIPA explained What Was SOPA? The Stop Online Piracy Act Explained A factual explainer on the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA): what the 2011 bill proposed, who supported and opposed it, the criticisms it drew, and why it never became law. 6 min read The 2012 blackout Why SOPA Failed: How the Internet Won An analysis of why SOPA failed: the coordinated blackout, broad tech-industry opposition, technical criticism, and public pressure that collapsed the bill in days. 6 min read Internet activism Internet Activism After SOPA: The Movement It Sparked How internet activism grew after SOPA: the tactics, campaigns, and organizations that emerged from the 2012 blackout and reshaped the ongoing fight for digital rights. 6 min read Digital rights history The Legacy of the 2012 SOPA Blackout How the 2012 SOPA blackout left a lasting mark on digital rights: the tactics it pioneered, the movements it inspired, and the questions it left unresolved. 5 min read

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Frequently asked questions

Did SOPA pass?
No. After the January 18, 2012 blackout protest, both SOPA and PIPA lost support and were shelved within days. Neither became law.
What is this counter showing?
The elapsed time since the January 18, 2012 blackout protest — the moment widely credited with defeating SOPA and PIPA.
What were SOPA and PIPA?
US bills (House and Senate) targeting online piracy whose broad enforcement measures sparked major free-speech and technical concerns.
Why does it count up, not down?
The original 'countdown' was to the 2012 vote, which never happened as planned. Since that's long past, the site now counts the time since the protest that stopped the bills.