Google executives found guilty of violating privacy of student bullied on video
By Thomas Ricker 
posted February 24th 2010 6:33AM
posted February 24th 2010 6:33AM
As you can imagine, Google has responded with vigor. In a post on Google's official blog ominously titled "Serious Threat to the Web in Italy," Google calls the decision "astonishing" citing the assistance it provided to local police in helping bring those who uploaded the video (and bullied the autistic child) to justice. More importantly, Google says that the decision "attacks the very principles of freedom on which the Internet is built." On the surface, we have to agree. Here's how Google describes the dystopian knock-on effect should this ruling take precedent:
Google will, of course, appeal."European Union law was drafted specifically to give hosting providers a safe harbor from liability so long as they remove illegal content once they are notified of its existence. The belief, rightly in our opinion, was that a notice and take down regime of this kind would help creativity flourish and support free speech while protecting personal privacy. If that principle is swept aside and sites like Blogger, YouTube and indeed every social network and any community bulletin board, are held responsible for vetting every single piece of content that is uploaded to them - every piece of text, every photo, every file, every video - then the Web as we know it will cease to exist, and many of the economic, social, political and technological benefits it brings could disappear."
This could sever the diplomacy between the US and Italy or the EU.
@Pyronick
no it couldn't
btw, i'm surprised no one has posted a link to the video yet
looks like Europe has a new cash crop, good for apple/microsoft, bad for google.
Dear Italian Judge,
Please READ THE COPYRIGHT STATEMENT on Google Video, and don't just scroll through it, then make a ruling. It makes you look stupid.
This is bullshit. That is all.
If I decided to put posters up aroind a town of somebody that would amount to bullying does this mean that the local council should go to jail for letting it happen?
Same principle here.
Berlusconi is a bully and a gangster. He is using his connections to keep a stranglehold on the media business in Italy.
Control the media, control politics - control Italy.
He is a dangerous man.
wow whats up with the italians ! ! ! have they got a grudge with google or something ? im definitely on Google's side with this one .
If Google truly believed what they wrote in that blog post, they'd never delete copyrighted content.
It's okay, Europe. We too know Italy's president is insane. North America won't hold this against you. You get a pass
Italian Court System = FAIL
come on, italians. we sure know that our president has some problems, but this doesn't necessarily relate to him. it's just a judge, we still have some separation between powers. there is no need to put us on shame when it's NOT needed. prejudices against us are already strong.
this video was pretty sick. the boy being bullied in the video had down syndrome and was getting bashed.
Sounds more like Italy needs to be taken behind the woodshed for an asswhoopin.. either that or ban Italy from Google access.
Google is profiting from such material :YES, hence, Google is guilty :YES.
I stand with Google, and am appalled by this government officials action. *raises middle finger in slow motion*
Im with google.......
This disturbs me, the only people who broke the law here are the boys who posted the video.
Europe needs to take a breather.
The Italian court system doesn't fuck around, huh? Somehow, I thought of Amanda Knox....
Seems to me that Italy is just following the trend set by the EU to use trumped up charges against large foreign corporations to raise money. Like the Microsoft browser issue, and now the Google antitrust issues. Seems to me to be a really good way to get said companies to withdraw from your market. Wonder how they would react to that?
Alright, let Google pull out of Italy lock stock and barrel. No Google search, Gmail, android devices, chrome, YouTube, and Google offices. Lets see what the Italian government's reaction is then.
the kid should have gone to that judge in texas who likes to punish big companies. He would have gotten a $12 million settlement....
This is by far one of the dumbest rulings ever.
I'm sooooo tired of the EU bullying US companies with fines, investigations and allegations that are irrelevant anywhere else where common sense is allowed in the courts. Sure, we have our own set of problems, but seriously, investigating Google for Antitrust? Throwing their executives in jail for a video that someone else posted on their site, and was promptly removed when discovered is asinine.
I personally think that large US technology companies like Apple (sued for misleading ads,) Microsoft (sued for including their own software within their own software) and Google (point stated) should discontinue business in countries like this that are "Technologically Hostile."
What do you expect of course they're going to advertise their own products/services...
I'm legal representative of the EU find me the nearest North American technology company to sue!! This BS has to stop. Quit chasin the deep pocket.
@reader1 Even Apple can't and doesn't go through every submission on their App store. There are many apps that make it through and then are removed later. And those are APPS which are much harder to make and far fewer than videos.
Something like tens of thousands of videos are uploaded to youtube EVERY DAY. HOW can one possibly watch that many videos?
According to google's own stats, EVERY minute 20 hours of video are uploaded to youtube. In one day, In ONE day that's 28,800 hours of video. In order to employ people from 9-5 to screen all of these, you would need to hire 3,600 people who's SOLE JOB would be to sit there are WATCH videos as they are submitted.
Tell me. HOW the heck ANY company can afford to pay 3,600 people EVERY DAY for a YEAR (including weekends and holidays) to just sit around watching videos.
P.S. You're an idiot.
Now that is just stupid. That judge must be a Luddite or something. Logic fail.
I wonder if we should sue Isotoner for letting OJ get away with murder...
@andyg8180 ...and the ROFLcopter touches down...
@reader1
are you kidding??!?!?! first off one idea behind the internet is so people can express themselves with out being censored. if you have closed-platform networks then it will all be restricted and people who want to talk about items that are taboo to others will be banned. The creativity of people will be squashed and there will be no where to do anything anymore.
Anyone wanting a closed platform model for the internet should be given a big lesson. for instance this blog would have to go through some kind of certification process along with EVERY other website out there. there billions if not trillions of websites and i for one like the diversity even if i don't agree with what they all say. so why don't you got crawl into your cave because it seems you like it better where, "everyone can be protected 24/7"
I love Italy, my second home :)
Unfortunately this isn't very surprising. The system over there is so horribly corrupt and just shot to hell it is really really sad.
ARGGGGGGG, FUCK THE EU
@Gigaflop
Agreed. This is also why a ton of rogue spamming malware apps are on Facebook. There aren't enough people to test every single feature of every single app that gets submitted.
Italy's court and justice system is the Joke of Europe (and the rest of the world).
By Just trying it out, Google’s latest version of Desktop looks really cool. It’s got some great features and it’s quite easy to use. Problem is even though Google’s Terms and Conditions states how they will never share any of your private information, what’s really stopping them and how do we really know what they are doing with it. Anyway how could we prove they were using our private information if we thought they were? I’m not saying anything new but I got a few ideas from this
http://ketiva.com/Computers_and_Internet/searching_through_the_google_desktop_route.html
If I was Google, I would have turned off ALL Google services to Italy, including YouTube, 5 minutes after this decision was brought. I bet the outcry when people learn why there is no Google will bring enough attention to this and it would get overturned very quickly. Wouldn't even hesitate to cut them off
so italy employs monkeys as judges....awesome.
The potential danger of this ruling is eclipsed only by its sheer stupidity. It is obscene. I agree with one person who left a comment on BGR's site suggesting that, in the interest of self-protection, Google should indiscriminately block all Italian IP's. The Italian public's outcry would ensure that this ruling got thrown out during appeals (not that such a thing should even be in question). Let's hope, for the sake of the three former Google employees who were convicted as well as for the future of the Web as we know it, that this ridiculous ruling gets the treatment it deserves. My suggestion? Shred it, burn it, and then bury it out in the same New Mexico desert landfill where Atari buried all those abysmal E.T. cartridges (if you don't know that story, you know what to do...Google it).
@Gigaflop one word for you sir, China.
Or you could sack 5-10 of Italy's judges and have enough to pay maybe a 1000 people to watch the videos.