Members of crypto-industry and freedom of information advocates publish a memorandum against Google’s attacks on bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.
The memorandum reads:
Google and its subsidiary YouTube have waged campaigns of suppression against the Bitcoin and blockchain industry for years. This behavior can only be compared to open acts of war. Currently, Google and YouTube systematically engage in the following activities:
- blocking cryptocurrency-related ad campaigns. - deleting or limiting access to information pertaining to Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies on YouTube. - pursuing a hostile information policy with regard to cryptocurrency projects. - removing apps of cryptocurrency-related companies and media resources from Google Play.
Furthermore, Google’s disregard for human rights, e.g. user privacy violations and restriction of free access to information, has been widely documented. Other corporations, like Apple and Facebook, have been exposed as partaking in the same violations.
We deem these actions anti-market behavior, digital militarism, and informational discrimination. We shall actively engage in community events, pursuing the goal of ending Google’s pressure on the industry.
At this time, we are organizing protests in Kyiv, Odesa, Tel Aviv, and New York. We will announce dates and further details in the near future.
We believe that the U.S. Senate should subpoena Google representatives to testify on the corporation’s hostile actions targeting industry members. The same initiative should be followed by competent institutions and agencies across the globe. We urge those concerned to sign a petition in support of our demands.
#ForkGoogle is a creative informational initiative bringing together the stakeholders and companies to support the development of alternative distributed technologies based on Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency systems.
In other words, if you don’t like the policies of Google, YouTube, etc. let’s fork them. It won’t happen overnight, but it will happen thanks to systematic actions by the professional community and stakeholders’ support.
The goals of the campaign include:
- Draw the professional community’s attention to technologies facilitating alternative content distribution and creation of media networks, as well as information processing and archiving. The community already has initial cases with projects like Steemit, Brave, etc. We should support alternative solutions more, attract investment into this sector of cryptocurrency economy, and incentivize the development of new competitive products. 2. Pull off one of the world’s largest informational campaigns about Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin isn’t just red and green. It’s not just a speculative asset. With the technological foundation developed over the years, the crypto-industry is able to offer solutions to other industries. These solutions will become more effective and scalable. 3. Draw Google and YouTube’s attention to the need for clarification of the corporate policies regarding crypto-related content and services. We have to urge the administration of said services to engage in a public discussion about the need to support and develop the crypto-industry.
The letter ends with the following instruction:
How to support the campaign:
- Distribute the information across the media, blogs, social networks, and even your friends.
- Let your near and dear ones know about #ForkGoogle.
- Even if there’s no Google office in your town, you can organize and hold a rally or public gathering in compliance with your country’s laws.
- Write letters to YouTube and Google questioning them about cryptocurrencies and blockchain, informing them about the ongoing campaign, and demanding that they stop blocking specialized apps.
