Abstract :
The Australian government plans to introduce a law establishing online censorship so broad that some experts compare it to that of Saudi Arabia. Communications minister Stephen Conroy says the new regulations are needed to protect the nation from child pornography and inadvertent exposure to other undesirable material. The government also argues the need to bring the Internet in line with other communications media, such as DVDs and TV. Opponents- including tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo, as well as local organizations like the Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations and Electronic Frontiers Australia- have responded that the scope of the content to be filtered is too broad and that the law will prove ineffective.
