Washington - President Bush on Monday signed into law the PRO-IP Act, which will increase penalties and law enforcement resources for copyright crimes, and also create a Cabinet-level "piracy czar" to coordinate anti-piracy efforts worldwide, Reuters reported. The PRO-IP Act was supported by entertainment industry groups like the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), as well as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Washington - The U.S. Senate on Friday approved the PRO-IP Act, which will beef up penalties and enforcement of intellectual property laws -- but the bill as passed did not include a controversial provision that would have granted the Justice Dept. new authority to prosecute civil copyright infringement cases. The provision about civil copyright enforcement was dropped from the bill after the Bush administration weighed in to complain that it would turn the Justice Dept. into "pro bono lawyers for private copyright holders regardless of their resources."

Washington - The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday approved the PRO-IP Act, a bill pushed for by Hollywood studios that would beef up law enforcement dedicated to protecting intellectual property, as well as increase penalties for piracy. "We applaud the members of the House of Representatives for passing the PRO-IP Act, H.R. 4279," said Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) president Dan Glickman. "It is a comprehensive, bipartisan measure that will strengthen our nation's economy and generate more jobs for American workers by bolstering protections for intellectual property."

Washington - The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday approved the PRO-IP Act, a bill that would provide more resources for the government to combat intellectual property crimes, increase penalties, and create a White House-level position to coordinate efforts. The bill, which was already amended to remove a portion that would have penalized each track on compilation CDs as a separate infringement, will now move to a vote in the full House; a Senate version of the bill was introduced last fall.