There is copyrighted material on YouTube. TV and movie executives don't want it there. Why not? Because it's costing them money. If nothing is done then surely YouTube will be the downfall of the entire film and television industry. Clearly it is the short clips uploaded by users that is hurting the entertainment world and not the ever-accessible bit-torrent and P2P sharing. No, the short teasers that -- assuming the show/movie is quality -- make people want to watch the rest of the content is the culprit. Shut it down before it's too late.

Anyway, that is beside the point. CEO Eric Schmidt announced today that Google is very close to turning on a system that will automatically identify copyrighted material when it is uploaded. This filtering system, which he referred to as 'Claim Your Content', was supposed to have been launched last year at YouTube but is yet to be rolled out. Schmidt made the announcement yesterday at the National Association of Broadcasters conference, where he seemed unfazed even in the face of the $1 billion lawsuit filed by Viacom last month against Google. He even went so far as to take a couple of shots at the always easy yet always deserving target that is Microsoft after they voiced concerns about Google's size and the safety of privacy on the Web.

When Microsoft's concerns were brought up, Schmidt responded with a coy "Microsoft?" Which, of course, is the appropriate response. But only because it isn't physically possible to slap the entire Microsoft Corporation as a whole.