Haynes.tv

Many concerns have been raised pertaining to the free flowing nature of information and content in the modern industrial age. Besides the burgeoning identity theft industry, major questions have been raised over the legality of copyrighted content on the Internet. Specifically, the media giant YouTube has been targeted for its blind spot towards copyrighted shows. All major “traditional” media corporations, such as CBS, NBC, BBC, and Viacom have cried bloody murder over the so-called piracy of their popular programs. YouTube has worked with these companies by deleting the content specified as content, although only after the corporations raise the issue, as well as work to make deals with these companies over the extent of profit sharing. Viacom has responded to Google’s (Google bought YouTube in 2006 for $1.6 billion) lack of interest by initiating a one billion dollar lawsuit accusing YouTube of major international copyright infringement.

YouTube is claiming that all its actions were perfectly legal as described by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. This act, the constitution of Internet copyright laws states that if a website deletes copyright protected materiel upon being notified by the copyright holder, than they are not liable for copyright infringement. However, Viacom contends that Google is aware of content and waits as long as possible to delete material, as evidenced by their attempt to broker a deal with major media conglomerates. However, the biggest legal issue at hand in this case is the precedent it will set for the emerging Internet media empire’s ability to show media created by traditional networks.

I see this case as only delaying a major media shift to the Internet. The advancement computer video technology and monitors combined with the shift to make the computer the center system in the household makes it apparent that traditional television as we know it is an endangered animal. We can all ready see with the introduction of Tivo and the DVR that television viewers want to see their own shows at their own times. We no longer want to be restrained by commercials, show times, and reruns. Major media networks are starting to recognize this shift, including Viacom. With new polls showing that teenager aged 13 to 21 spend as much time on the Internet as watching TV, MTV, a viacom owned network, is launching a new website aiming at capturing young web surfers. They offer such applications as actual music (if you can believe that) and personal remixes of popular shows. Viacom recognizes that it needs to extend its empire to the Internet. However they want to do it in their own way and they are willing to wait in order the achieve the biggest success and profit. They do not want to see other websites such as YouTube creating a steady audience of their programs, unless they could broker a deal that gave them a substantial proportion of the profits. With YouTube’s inability to cooperate, Viacom has decided to take it under their belt to stop any copyright infringement and start work on the Viacom death-staresque Internet empire. I can guarantee that if Viacom loses this law suit they will immediately go into stiff competition with YouTube, intending to cripple the site in any way possible.