Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - (Page 14) COMMENTARY www.homemediamagazine.com THE BUZZ BY CHRIS TRIBBEY, SENIOR REPORTER Viacom’s Not Coming to Get You he world of YouTube and viral videos has changed how our society works. Nobodies in their mothers’ basements find instant fame. Goofs by celebrities and politicians that would have otherwise gone unnoticed are captured for worldwide audiences, and then show up on prime-time news. A video of a prairie dog mixed with intense music gets millions of views, and then spawns spin-offs that get millions of views. A mock 300 YouTube video gets picked up by an independent distributor and turned into a feature-length direct-to-video release. It’s intriguing and insane at the same time. And this ability for anyone to watch almost anything instantly on the Web has resulted in hard questions about the public’s access to copyrighted work, and who’s responsible for violating video copyrights. Viacom Inc. has been fighting with Google, owner T YOUTUBE USERS AND OTHERS WHO CALLED FOR A BOYCOTT OF VIACOM PRODUCTS OVERREACTED. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR VIACOM TO GO AFTER YOUTUBE USERS WHO SIMPLY VIEWED COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. of YouTube, over this issue for more than a year now, and this month won a key judgment in its $1 billion suit that quickly earned the wrath of YouTube users. Viacom argues Google hasn’t done enough to prevent copyrighted material from showing up on YouTube, and the federal judge in the case has granted Viacom access to all YouTube viewership records. Viacom says it will use this information to show that users watch just as much copyrighted material as user-generated video. YouTube users were quick to accuse the corporation of getting ready to go after them, the end users. Chris Tribbey’s e-mail address is ctribbey@questex.com It’s natural for consumers to mistrust giant corporations. But YouTube users and others who called for a boycott of Viacom products overreacted. Viacom and YouTube have agreed not to disclose any personal information about YouTube users, including Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. And it would have been nearly impossible for Viacom to go after YouTube users who simply viewed copyrighted material (not to mention fiscally suicidal). Viacom would have had to prove that hundreds of millions of viewers actively sought to violate copyrights by watching the video, and nobody can prove that viewers know what content violates copyrights and what doesn’t. Only those uploading copyrighted content — on YouTube, on peer-to-peer networks, on MySpace pages — are violating the law. The rest of us are just watching them do it. READERS’ FORUM I The following is an excerpt from a letter in response to Chris Tribbey’s article “Court Opens Book on YouTube Use to Studio” (HM, July 13-19, 2008), concerning a court decision ordering YouTube to share data with Viacom about video clip usage (Ed. note: In a July 14 court filing, Viacom backed off its request for specific user information such as IP addresses): T H EY SA ID IT “CONTENT MAY NO LONGER BE KING IN THE ENTERTAINMENT BUSINESS.” Anthony DiClemente, media analyst with Lehman Brothers, on the threat of digital distribution to studio earnings The Wicked Witch of the Web? Ding dong, the witch is dead! Or at least she is starting to melt. Wow I would say this is very good news for the entire copyright industry. While potentially inconvenient to YouTube viewers, and understanding the importance of privacy protection in the complex world of the Internet these days, this decision by the judge in the Viacom v. Google/ YouTube case in New York may be the best thing that has happened to the copyright industries in this country, and to our overall economy, in practically a decade. I have been following this infringement case, and others like it, now for several years. I, for one, am sick and tired of the Googles of the world blaming their own customers for all of the infringing activity that occurs day in and day out over the Google-sponsored networks. Who do you think gains the most financially from these obvious infringements — Google or the poor shmuck in Louisville who does not have a clue what is right or wrong, let alone what is infringing and what is not? In fact, if it is true that an individual typically adapts his or her production and viewing habits from what they see and are taught by the larger media, entertainment, Fortune 500 and technology companies in this country (“if this weren’t legal, certainly mighty Google wouldn’t encourage it as they do or run AdSense ads on the infringing sites, and Exxon/Mobil wouldn’t be placing ads on the sites that are displaying the ‘shared’ works, either”), then who do we really have to blame for this chaos? You guessed it. It is an unfortunate reality today that many of the copyright defense lawyers, and their publicly financed clients out to make the big bucks regardless of the rules, have made a mockery of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (the DMCA), which was signed into law in 1998 by President Clinton. Like the music industry has learned in the school of hard knocks (aka the real world), it is virtually impossible today to hold the middlemen in these unlawful Internet distribution channels and networks accountable. So, what do the copyright companies have to do to protect their valuable property? Go directly after the often innocent end users who are often sucked into this game, more often unknowingly than not. It is shameful. Perhaps this New York court decision will help to turn those tides. Google enables widespread copyright infringement activity like no other company on this planet. Google subsidizes entire networks of infringers through its Adwords and AdSense marketing and advertising programs. Google facilitates willful copyright infringement. Google enables widespread copyright infringement. Day in and day out, Google causes enormous damages to legitimate copyright holders every second of every single day. Google has been doing this for years. They earn a substantial portion of their overall revenue and profits by sponsoring illegal activities over the Internet. And their operations outside the United States are far more egregious than the infringement activity we see referenced in this Viacom case, which is largely within our borders. I, for one, have had enough. Baseless, if not ludicrous, excuses and piracy defense strategies, implemented by what used to be some of the finest copyright law firms in this country — “fair use,” “safe harbor,” “no harm,” “unclean hands,” “de minimus damage,” “copyright misuse,” “DMCA safeguards,” “willful blindness,” “laches,” and on and on, can drag these cases on for years — haven’t we seen it all? What do the legal terms all mean in Google’s true vernacular? How about this: “We are big. We are powerful. We can do anything we damn well please. “Quit complaining, copyright owners, or we’ll cut you off from all the online revenue streams, as well.” Aren’t you tired of watching Google hide behind the skirttails of their customers (“They were the ones who loaded the illegal videos onto our system, not us”)? Or , better yet, “how were we to know that Bart Simpson and the Spice Girls weren’t already in the public domain?” (Ed. note: Quotes not attributable to Google.) Is Google alone in this? Unfortunately, the answer is no. Microsoft, AOL, Yahoo and others are moving as fast as they can to mimic and duplicate Google’s cash cow system, whether the law is violated or not. Cash is the king George P. Riddick, III Chairman/CEO, Imageline Inc. “ALL THE DELETED SCENES ARE DELETED BECAUSE THEY WERE CRAPPY. IF YOU WANT TO SEE THEM, THAT’S YOUR PROBLEM.” Guillermo del Toro, director of Hellboy II: The Golden Army, on likely not including a longer cut of the film on DVD and Blu-ray We Want to Hear From You! Please send letters to: Editor, Home Media Magazine 201 East Sandpointe Ave., Suite 500 Santa Ana, CA 92707 E-mail: HomeMediaMagazine@questex.com Fax: 714.338.6712 Include name, business address (city and state) and telephone number. Letters are subject to editing. Join Us Online: www.homemediamagazine.com Visit our Web site to participate in discussion boards and weekly polls on the latest industry issues. Home Media Magazine July 20–26, 2008 http://www.homemediamagazine.com http://www.homemediamagazine.com
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 Home Media Magazine - June 20-26, 2008 Contents News TV DVD Commentary Horror/Halloween Reviews Pipeline Research Top 20 DVD Sellers Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts Just Announced Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - June 20-26, 2008 (Page Cover1) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - June 20-26, 2008 (Page Cover2) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - June 20-26, 2008 (Page 1) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - June 20-26, 2008 (Page 2) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - June 20-26, 2008 (Page 3) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Home Media Magazine - June 20-26, 2008 (Page 4) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Contents (Page 5) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - News (Page 6) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - News (Page 7) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - News (Page 8) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - News (Page 9) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - News (Page 10) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - News (Page 11) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - News (Page 12) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - TV DVD (Page 13) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Commentary (Page 14) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Commentary (Page 15) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Commentary (Page 16) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Commentary (Page 17) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Horror/Halloween (Page 18) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Horror/Halloween (Page 19) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Horror/Halloween (Page 20) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Horror/Halloween (Page 21) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Horror/Halloween (Page 22) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Horror/Halloween (Page 23) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Horror/Halloween (Page 24) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Horror/Halloween (Page 25) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Reviews (Page 26) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Reviews (Page 27) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Reviews (Page 28) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Reviews (Page 29) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Reviews (Page 30) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Reviews (Page 31) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Pipeline (Page 32) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Pipeline (Page 33) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Top 20 DVD Sellers (Page 34) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Top 20 DVD Sellers (Page 35) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts (Page 36) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts (Page 37) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Just Announced (Page 38) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Just Announced (Page 39) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Just Announced (Page 40) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Just Announced (Page Cover3) Home Media Magazine - July 20-26, 2008 - Just Announced (Page Cover4)
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