Hosting Industry Professionals;

The U.S. based Hosting Industry is in grave danger of losing crucial litigation protections like the DMCA and the Communications Decency Act. Recent legislation introduced in both the House and the Senate may make hosts liable for the content placed on their servers by customers, even if they have no knowledge of it. These bills will have immediate, and business affecting impacts on you, and standing idly by is not an option. Fortunately, we have the opportunity to act before these bills become law. However, the industry needs to find a voice. If we do not come together to take part in the discussion happening right now in Washington D.C., there are no assurances that this industry will survive intact.

Come join us for the first meeting of a working group to plan coordinated action towards building a Hosting Industry Association designed to protect our Industry's business interests. The meeting will take place at HostingCon, and we will need your help to build a roadmap for what we need to do, and how we're going to achieve it. Join us as we lay the foundation for an Association that protects our interests.

We need everybody–hosts of all size, as well as the businesses that rely upon the hosting industry. We need you.

The working group will be held during the HostingCon conference in San Diego, California from 11:00a-12:00p on Monday, August 8.

If you have not yet registered for HostingCon, do so today: http://www.hostingcon.com/account/register/

You can find a discount code for WebHostingTalk.com website members here in the HostingCon forum on WebHostingTalk.com. (http://www.webhostingtalk.com/)

We have already received commitments from a number of hosting providers to take part as we begin this journey, including SoftLayer, Hosting.com, ServInt and SingleHop. To see a list of attendees for this important working group, and add your name to the list right here in this forum thread.

We look forward to hearing from you, and having your help in getting this important Association off the ground, as it takes its first steps at HostingCon, Monday, August 8. A full HostingCon conference pass will be required in order to attend this planning session.

If you have questions, please post them here and we'll address them. I hope to see you on Monday, August 8th!

TheWHIR just did a Q&A with me here talking more about what it is we are putting together:

http://www.thewhir.com/web-hosting-news/070811_QA_Christian_Dawson_of_ServInt_on_Public_Policy_and_Hosting

Christian, I'll be in attendance and look forward to learning more about what's going on.

I will definitely be there!

I'll be there buddy.

I will be in attendance.

I'll be there, where specifically is this meeting going to be held?

WiredTree will be there.

where specifically is this meeting going to be held?

All the meeting spaces and session rooms are near each other this year. The room we're in doesn't have a number, but we'll have a bog sign on the door that says "Save Hosting!".

This event is now called “Save Hosting!” and will take place Monday, August 8th at 12 noon in room 30A of the San Diego Convention Center as part of HostingCon. For quick updates we've set up http://twitter.com/savehosting

Here's a press release recently issued about the event: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/8/prweb8690488.htm

we'll have a bog sign on the door that says


Usually a sign on a bog door says "ladies" or "gents" :p

Well done, Rob - well done! ;)

SaveHosting kicks off today at Noon in room 30A of the SDCC at HostingCon. See you there!

We had a great SaveHosting meeting here at HostingCon - thanks for your attendance and involvement!

We ended up attending the meeting, and while we didn't end up speaking out about the issues (more there to get an idea of what everyone is concerned about) we are very interested in pressing our congressmen for a sit-down with local hosting companies. Shortly after returning from Hostingcon, we will be arranging a meeting with our congressmen and representatives, to start a dialogue with them.
Our hope is to explain our position, and dispel myths that exist about our industry (i.e. that we're trying to protect customers committing malicious and/or illegal acts), and push for cooperation with the small/medium/enterprise hosting industry as a whole.
We will also begin a dialogue with federal law enforcement agencies to help educate them on what the hosting industry does, and how our company in particular works. Our hope is to develop a partnership with law enforcement agencies nationwide where we can share general information about how the hosting industry is managed to educate them in how data is stored. That way, when subpoenas and warrants are issued, we can work with them to develop a solution to protect customers out of the purview of the warrant, and also provide the necessary information required in the subpoena/warrant to aide in the prosecution of potential criminals.

We've generally had a lot of luck in dealing with the FBI and Secret Service, etc. Just get in touch with your local branch office and start a dialogue. We always get assigned a specific agent to deal with and send things through and has lead to a very good relationship.

I do feel though that the industry needs to look at government lobbying on the federal and state levels and that if we can get together to make sure our interests are being met I would gladly contribute funds to that sort of effort.

Sorry, with the location and time I was unable to attend the meeting, but would love to participate in such an organization.