European Union lawmakers approved a copyright directive Tuesday intended to give writers and artists more protection of their creative rights and incomes. The European Parliament voted 348-274 to pass the online copyright bill, with 36 abstentions. "Web giants have been able to benefit from content created in Europe by paying derisory taxes, transferring huge profits to the U.S. or China," European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said. More than 5 million people signed an online petition trying to prevent the directive from passing, saying the measures would unfairly censor posts online. But open internet advocates in the U.S. stress that the directive could stifle traffic to news organizations and censor people's posts online.

Source: ABC News March 26, 2019 18:20 UTC