Risk & Safety

Yes, video copyright owners have issues with YouTube, Grouper, and Bolt, but they may have even more litigious feelings for TVU Networks. The Shanghai-based video P2P company provides a downloadable media player that "transmits TV shows [much less grainy than streamed video], including pay-for-view broadcasts, from U.S. and international broadcasters such as ABC, HBO, the Disney Channel, The … [Read more...] about Dicey video-sharing

Google's planned acquisition of YouTube could be a step forward for youth online safety on the hugely popular video-sharing site. It'll probably take longer for YouTube to hire a full-time "online-safety czar," as News Corp. did not long after it acquired MySpace, because copyrights and intellectual property are the No. 1 controversy of this high-profile deal. "The purchase was announced after the … [Read more...] about Google + YouTube: A plus for kids

YouTube is like the new kid at school everyone wants to meet (or compete with). This week's signs that the video-sharing site has truly arrived are: use of the site by the US government, fresh competition from Microsoft, and deals with Warner Music and ABC. The White House is using YouTube to expand its anti-drug public-service advertising, putting made-for-TV anti-drug videos on the site," the … [Read more...] about Popular new kid YouTube

Universal Music Group says its talks with YouTube are deteriorating and its talks with MySpace are progressing, the Associated Press reports. Universal's "contends the wildly popular Web sites YouTube and MySpace are violating copyright laws by allowing users to post music videos and other content involving Universal artists," and it will file a lawsuit against YouTube, according to the AP. … [Read more...] about Social sites: New copyright issues

Another file-sharing service - by which people can download free but copyrighted music and other media - settled this week. "The firm behind popular online file-sharing software eDonkey has agreed to pay $30 million to avoid potential copyright infringement lawsuits from the recording industry," the Associated Press reports. The company, MetaMachine, Inc., agreed to stop distributing its eDonkey, … [Read more...] about eDonkey bites the dust – sort of