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The cooperation between the major networks (and Veoh and Dailymotion) to create principles for finding and removing copyright infringing content on UGC services is a first for networks previously unable to come together in their digital media strategies. These guidelines are a long time coming.

But getting all networks together to agree on principles for user-generated content and video sharing has resulted in some vague principles and an alliance that leaves room for anticompetitive cooperation down the line.

At a minimum these guidelines will raise the barrier to entry for startups looking to…

Finally. At last. Phew. About F*&ing Time.

YouTube announced yesterday that they have begun testing an anti-piracy video batching database to protect themselves from copyright infringement lawsuits. The original announcement of the YouTube Video Identification system was back in June.

According to the Official Google Blog, the Video Identification system goes above and beyond the company’s legal responsibilities, but I’m not entirely sure thats the right message for them to be putting out. “We do what we can,” isn’t the warm, fuzzy sentiment that will prevent future lawsuits.

It remains to be seen…

It took a Minnesota jury only 4 hours after 2 days of testimony to find single mother of 2 Jammie Thomas guilty of copyright infringement. She is now responsible for the $222,000 judgment for re-distributing 24 songs.

This, the first RIAA lawsuit to go to trial sets a major precedent for the music industry. Sharing music online is illegal, the law is immutably clear and a jury when presented with proof has no choice but to enforce it.

That said, Thomas’ lawyer Richard Gabriel’s defense: “Someone used her name and IP address—it’s not…

The Purple One, Prince, plans to sue YouTube and other online outlets in an attempt to “reclaim his art on the Internet,” according to a Reuters report.

“YouTube … appear(s) to choose not to filter out the unauthorized music and film content which is core to their business success,” according to a statement.

We couldn’t agree with you more, Prince. We’ve been critical of YouTube in the past for their lack of content filtering, be it copyright material or hate speech. One of these days they are going to get tired of…

DivX today filed suit against Universal Music Group, following Veoh’s lead and becoming the latest company to preemptively sue to protect their rights as set forth by the DMCA. The weight these cases will play in the future of media cannot be understated.

DivX has quickly become one of the most widely respected companies in online video, a result of the strength of their codec and their online video site Stage6, which has become of the top 200 sites in the world.

The argument put forth by DivX mirrors that of Google and Veoh:…

Another reminder of the promotional power of television: after Will Ferrell’s The Landlord was featured on ABC’s iCaught tonight, Funny or Die is the top tracked search on Google, a sign that even Hollywood stars can’t generate nearly the attention online that TV can.

But what’s really interesting is the exploitation of UGC by mainstream media for little if any compensation to the producers. In addition to airing between ads on national TV, videos are re-posted behind pre-roll ads on ABC’s site without attribution to the original creators. (Funny or Die is a rare exception due…

A month after Veoh preemptively sued Universal for relief against what they felt was an impending suit, Universal has followed through reports Bloomberg, though I can’t find the complaint anywhere online yet.

Yesterday, UMG filed briefs in their defense in the initial suit citing cases againstGrouper Crackle, Bolt (remember them?) and MySpace as precedent for dismissal, stating in a notice:

Specifically, all of these actions involve copyright infringement claims by UMG against defendants’ “user-generated video” websites.

These actions assert that defendants’ websites directly, vicariously and contributorily infringe Plaintiffs’ copyrights by allowing users to upload files…

Two weeks after GoFish terminated their deal to acquire Bolt.com the online video site has shut its doors. Bolt becomes the first, but likely not that last company to disintegrate following a costly settlement with a music company.

At the time of the settlement a Financial Times article noted:

Aaron Cohen, Bolt’s chief executive, said the agreement would allow the companies to work together to create programming and new content tailored to the internet.

So much for that. Bolt is now a smudge on Universal Music Group’s shoe. Another reason to take stock of the divergence of mainstream…