Google has come out with a bullish defence against Viacom’s $1 billion copyright lawsuit. The Guardian quotes Google’s head of video content partnerships, Patrick Walker, speaking in London: “Viacom took one approach, and people like the BBC have taken another approach. We’re not slowing down in any way. It goes to tell that the usage of YouTube has grown significantly from the Viacom announcement. We don’t see it impacting our business.”
The BBC signed a carriage and ad revenue-share deal with the video sharing site last month that places short program clips on three YouTube channels. Viacom, on the other hand, served a lawsuit claiming a massive copyright abuse over YouTube’s use of some 150,000 clips. The two companies operate in different markets, of course – BBC has been charged with adding more commercial revenue streams though its content is owned by the British public, while Viacom’s material is its own to monetize.
Related:
– More on Youtube-Rivals JV: Fox, NBC and Sony; Distribution on MySpace, MSN and Yahoo
– BBC In Clips Deal With YouTube; Ad Rev Share; UK Blackout On News Clip
– Viacom Sues Google-YouTube: Wants More Than $1 Billion In Damages, Injunction