Google counters Viacom's copyright claims

Digital Millennium Copyright Act safe-harbor provisions invoked

By Jeremy Kirk

May 1, 2007 12:00 PM ET

Comments

IDG News Service - Google Inc. has rejected claims that it enables copyright infringement on its YouTube.com Web site, its first response to entertainment giant Viacom Inc.'s $1 billion lawsuit filed in March.

In documents filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Google outlined how it plans to defend itself against Viacom, which along with the damages wants an injunction to prevent further use of its content. Google requested a jury trial.

A cornerstone of Google's defense will be the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which has safe harbor provisions that relieve carriers and hosting providers from responsibility for copyright offenses as long as they remove the material.

"By seeking to make carriers and hosting providers liable for Internet communications, Viacom's complaint threatens the way hundreds of millions of people legitimately exchange information, news, entertainment, and political and artistic expression," Google said in its response.

Google, which completed its $1.65 billion acquisition of YouTube in November, said it provides tools for copyright holders to find their material and uses technology to prevent videos from being reposted after they have been removed.

Viacom has contended that those tools aren't adequate, and filed suit in March about a month after demanding that Google remove 100,000 clips from YouTube.

Viacom filed a list of offending clips, including some from MTV Unplugged, The Ren and Stimpy Show and The Daily Show. The media company's properties include MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, Comedy Central and Paramount Pictures.

Comment Recommend Digg Twitter ShareThis

Email Print Send Feedback Reprints

Reprinted with permission from

IDG.net
Story copyright 2009 International Data Group. All rights reserved.

Jump to comments

google

Additional Resources

WHITE PAPER

EFD vs. HDD - What You Need to Know

Enterprise flash drives provide a new Tier 0 storage layer capable of delivering high I/O performance at a very low latency. Proper use of EFDs in an Oracle environment can deliver increased performance compared to fibre channel drives. Read the recommendations for identification of the best DB components for EFDs.

WHITE PAPER

Gartner Research Report: Magic Quadrant for Application Delivery Controllers, 2009

The market for products to improve the delivery of application software over networks remains dynamic and innovative. Vendors focused on solving enterprises' most-pressing application problems have become the top players.

WHITE PAPER

Eight Criteria for Server Load Balancing

Server load balancers are a simple yet highly effective means to scale an application environment while ensuring its availability. Today's solutions should also address application performance and security. Read about the top eight criteria you should consider when choosing a server load balancer and how Citrix NetScaler meets those requirements.

What People Are Saying

0 comments | Add new

See all comments (0) | Add new

White Papers & Webcasts

Death to PST Files
Download Now

Four Ways to Improve Your TSM Environment with a SEPATON VTL
Watch Now

The Tangled Web: Silent Threats & Invisible Enemies
Download Now

Tape Killed the IT Guy
Watch Now

Forrester Consulting Mobility Study: Taking Control of Enterprise Mobile Device Diversity
Download Now

BRM: What You Can Do To Reduce Risk In Challenging Times
Watch this webcast now!

What IT Must Do to Support Employee-Owned BlackBerry, iPhone and Android Mobile Devices
Download Now

Web 2.0, Social Media and the Dark Web - A Web Criminals Paradise?
In this discussion, learn about the challenges of protecting your users from the potentially unsafe content hidden in the "Dark Web".

eGuide: Enterprise Security
Smart Security Strategies for 2010. Read now!

Disaster Recovery 2008: Reduced Costs and Improved Performance
How long can your Enterprise afford to be without your data? With an accelerated disaster recovery program, you never have to answer this...

All White Papers | All Webcasts