They are joined by top-level figures fromgovernment, industry and international agencies, as well as those concerned with the content that will be delivered through broadband networks, from education to entertainment.

UNESCO: MEDIA SERVICES

Telecoms firms and Internet-access providers are concerned that, under some countries' laws, they would be liable for content travelling over their networks and so would have to start monitoring and filtering it.

ECONOMIST: Regulating the Internet

Opponents are particularly concerned about the House legislation, which would allow the Hollywood studios and other content owners to ask credit-card processors to block payments to U.S. websites accused of hosting pirated material.

WSJ: Web Piracy Bill Faces Fiercer Fight