"We
believe these new businesses are copyright infringers and owe us
tens of millions of dollars," Universal chief executive Doug Morris
told investors at a conference this week. "How we deal with these
companies will be revealed shortly."
YouTube and MySpace have grown exponentially in recent months as
viewers flock to watch and hear clips posted by users. Many of the
clips are of copyrighted material and are posted without holders'
permission.
Rights holders such as record labels and broadcasters initially
opposed the use of copyrighted material but as the power of the two
sites has grown, so has the willingness of mainstream media
organisations to cooperate.
CBS chief executive Leslie Moonves told the Royal Television
Society conference this week that he is considering putting
together a special news clips package each day for distribution on
YouTube.
Already, broadcaster NBC has agreed to have its own channel on
YouTube filled with its content. Doritos has set aside a $2.5
million Superbowl ad slot during which it will show a user-created
advert posted on YouTube competitor Yahoo! Video.
Universal's surprise announcement that it is about to take
action reverses that recent trend of cooperation between old and
new media. Record labels and broadcasters may fear that they are
being left behind in a rich-media online revolution. Many are
reported to have considered buying YouTube, but a likely $1 billion
price tag that analysts put on the business will deter most,
including Moonves.
"I doubt we would buy it at this point," Moonves told the RTS.
"Maybe we would look for the next YouTube, the next great idea
that's not spread across the world."
Some analysts believe that Universal's newly aggressive stance
is a bargaining tactic in ongoing negotiations with user-content
sites over how to integrate legal, licensed content. "To drive the
negotiations in the directions they want, they're starting to make
it clear there are legal alternatives for not complying with what
Universal wants done," analyst Rob Enderle told news wire AP.
While YouTube consists of user-submitted video snippets, MySpace
is often host to unlicensed clips of music posted and hosted by
fans of bands. Many record labels are now using MySpace as a
mainstream promotional tool for acts.
Disclaimer: We hope you find OUT-LAW’s content useful. It’s prepared by the lawyers at Pinsent Masons. Please remember, though, that it’s intended as general information only. It’s not legal advice. If that’s what you’re seeking, please
contact us. See also: our
full disclaimer
