mattatwork's Journal: Google Responds to Viacom Lawsuit

According to a NY Times article, Google has responded to the Viacom Lawsuit unfounded and claims legal safe harbor in sections of the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

The 1998 law "balances the rights of copyright holders and the need to protect the Internet as an important new form of communication," Google said in its filing. "By seeking to make carriers and hosting providers liable for Internet communications, Viacom's complaint threatens the way hundreds of millions of people legitimately exchange information, news, entertainment, and political and artistic expression."

Viacom responded with:

"This response ignores the most important fact of the suit, which is that YouTube does not qualify for safe harbor protection under the D.M.C.A. It is obvious that YouTube has knowledge of infringing material on their site, and they are profiting from it."

Representives for Google have said they are ready to take this to court. I don't know about you, I can't wait 'till July 27 and see the rumble in the court room!