Psst! Wanna See a YouTube lawsuit?
Note: If you're looking for the Viacom v. Google and YouTube lawsuit, see this post. If you'd rather peruse a list of all video-sharing lawsuits and subpoenas, see here.
You may be watching YouTube, but YouTube is watching you too. And it's telling the copyright cops when you do something wrong.
Reel Pop buddy and Marketwatch journo Ben Charny recently reported that YouTube helped Paramount sue a filmmaker who uploaded dialog from the studio's "Twin Towers." Instead of simply taking down the video, YouTube actively worked with Paramount, suggesting that YouTube is very willing to work with content owners and users shouldn't expect protection from the site.
So far, YouTube has only been sued once. But several media companies are looking into the feasibility of a lawsuit. Meanwhile, Sony-owned Grouper and indie site Bolt are being sued for infringement.
Anyway, if reading lawsuits blows your skirt up, take a look at the only lawsuit filed against YouTube so far. It's a big doc, about 1.6MB, but worth it if you're curious about how Robert Tur and his attornies justify suing the company despite the DMCA's safe harbor provisions.
A little background: Robert Tur is an Emmy award-winning "pioneering helipcopter pilot and television journalist" who owns and operates the Los Angeles News Service (LANS). (Lest you think he's some crackpot, Tur has also received the Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence and a Peabody.)
According to the lawsuit, Tur was first on the scene at the O.J. Simpson chase (I watched from an Applebee's in Virginia -- how bout you?) and was the only reporter who taped the beating of Reginal Denny during the riots in 1992.
Tur has apparently been defending his footage for years as it was distributed across various file-sharing networks (journalist, meet windmills). His lawyers cite the Grokster Supreme Court case, but say YouTube is worse than Grokster b/c, unlike the latter, "YouTube's business model allows it to have actual knowledge of what particular copyrightable files are being distributed, played and copied through its service."
The lawsuit also alleges that YouTube doesn't employ filtering technology, an allegation that may soon be refuted with the addition of new fingerprinting systems, although that improvement won't apply retroactively to Tur's claims of infringement.
At any rate, it's a good read if you, like me, enjoy reading primary sources. Heave to.
