YouTube: Viacom would demand removal of videos it covertly uploaded itself
By Ross Miller 
posted March 18th 2010 5:51PM
posted March 18th 2010 5:51PM
As you may have heard, Viacom and YouTube have been having a little tift lately, in the form of a major lawsuit by the former over copyrighted material posted on the video portal. It's a lawsuit that, according to YouTube, will cause such video sites to "cease to exist in the current form" -- but more importantly, it's a lawsuit that leads to some rather hilarious behind-the-scenes details. Here's a really juicy one that the official YT blog published today by Chief Counsel Zahavah Levine. Word has it that Viacom had hired over the years at least 18 different marketing firms to inconspicuously upload content. We can't really say it better than the posting:Wait, it gets better. According to Levine, Viacom's tactics were so good that the company itself didn't even know which videos it had uploaded, prompting multiple occasions where it would demand a clip removed, only to later ask for its reinstatement. "In fact," she claims, "some of the very clips that Viacom is suing us over were actually uploaded by Viacom itself." Hit up the source link for all the details. Honestly, we can't wait to see what else is dug up in these proceedings."[Viacom] deliberately "roughed up" the videos to make them look stolen or leaked. It opened YouTube accounts using phony email addresses. It even sent employees to Kinko's to upload clips from computers that couldn't be traced to Viacom."
Update: Of course, that's not the whole story. Also revealed in court documents today was discussions by Viacom to -- get this -- purchase YouTube before News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch got the chance to do it himself. Let's be thankful for that judge's decision to unseal all court documents, shall we?
This is awesome, in a sad way. The worst part? Google itself. There seems to be an invisible line of having your account suspended or not. I experienced this myself as my youtube account was suspended overnight, no warnings, nothing. I asked Google, and days later, they just emailed me a generic link to their TOS of every Google services. I asked them which videos violated which TOS (per youtube's TOS, Google would block/delete the offending videos and warned you. My whole account was suspended overnight without warnings), they never respond back.
Think about that next time you use any of Google's services. Imagine if your Gmail, blogger, or Picasa account got suspended overnight without warnings.
@pika2000
Who cares if they suspend your account. It was free and there is nothing stopping you from just creating another. It's not like a google/youtube account has any value.
@Pigs Yeah, say that when your email account went poof overnight without warning. You won't care if you're just a pirate/leecher. But not everybody are pirates/leechers. Content in youtube could be your personal videos, and imagine if that went poof overnight, without warnings. And imagine if that happens to your gmail account. Yeah, you can always create a new account, but imagine the stuff you lose. Now, if Google warned me first (per their TOS), letting me know what's wrong so I can fix it (either modify the video, delete it, or whatever), it's a different story. But instead they just suspend the whole account.
*facepalm*
So it was an inside job. Damn.
Governments need to stop taking orders from these record companies. They're criminal.
@mininwocollapse Tell that to the people that keep voting for the same representatives again and again.
You have failed me Engadget. For not allowing me to edit/delete my posts
@Lord Vader
Should you say:
"You have failed me for the last time, Engadget! I have you now! Fire the Deathstar!" ?
No? Or did I just get carried away just a teensy bit?
I pwn myself you see that oh yeah that was me....I mean sersly? Covert uploading at Kinko's WTH man. I feel bad for the judge. He is like what is this? Freaking Nutjobs.
You folks should really read the official summary of the three year case before making comments that are based on the YouTube blog site.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/35932202
http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/CNBC/Sections/News_And_Analysis/__Story_Inserts/graphics/__CHARTS_SPECIAL/Viacom_Statement_of_Undisputed_Facts.pdf
@bdoguy yeah, I commented about how biased this story was and got downranked to oblivion... guess lots of google/youtube fanboys
I lol'd literally! Will enjoy watching this unfold!
Would Love to see Viacom site get sandboxed off Google search :)
This is amazing.
Viacom, why are you trying to dupe Google? They know and see everything.
Wow, Viacom sure did make a joke of themselves!!!!
can I sue youtube for all the racist, ignorant comments on every video?
Split Infinitive.
You engadget editors are failing. There was a split infinite in that blog entry. It said "discussions by Viacom to -- get this -- purchase Youtube".
Grammatically it should have been: "discussions by Viacom -- get this -- to purchase Youtube."
The form to+infitive should not be split.
@WindowsPhone7Series
Once was enough. Quit reposting endlessly, you. It doesn't make your case more valid, and harms your case more.
The update implies, or at least I would infer from it, that NewsCorp did purchase YouTube. But in reality it was Google that bought them.
Ah Wild & Crazy kids another favorite childhood show I used to watch on NICK. And F U Viacom for deleting all my favorite oldies shows. if you get sick and tired of copy right. PUT ALL CLASSIC SHOWS AND MOVIES WE LIKE OR JUST UPLOAD THEM YOURSELF. And stop taking it off YOUTUBE. can't even find any of my favorite oldies DISTRIBUTED BY YOU.