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Filed under: Video, Web services, Google

Google faces copyright threat over YouTube

Google + YouTubeBefore Google acquired YouTube a lot of people said that any company that bought YouTube would be "buying a lawsuit." Or a lot of them. And to nobody's surprise, that seems to be the case for Google. According to the Guardian, Time Warner (whose Warner Music arm struck deals with both YouTube and Google in previous weeks) has "fired a shot across the bows of Google," saying that it would pursue its compyright complaints against YouTube, and that now that YouTube is a Google property that pursuit will be "kicked up to the Google level." Though Google, whose market cap is higher than Time Warner's, stands a better chance against Time Warner's lawyers than most companies, Time Warner chief Dick Parsons says, "If you let one thing ignore your rights as an owner it makes it much more difficult to defend those rights when the next guy comes along," even if that "one thing" is now under Google's ample wing. Other media companies will surely be keeping a close eye on Time Warner and Google's moves in the coming months to see how this all shapes up.

Filed under: Video, Web services, Google

YouTube founders speak out on Google deal

YouTube + GoogleIn case you've been living under an incredible volume of sediment and hadn't heard, yesterday search giant Google acquired video giant YouTube for $1.65 billion in stock. YouTube has been surprisingly quiet about the deal so far, posting neither blog entries no press releases, but perhaps they're content to leave that up to their new parent company. YouTube founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen have, however, posted a video in which they talk about the acquisition, make some promises about what's in store for YouTube, and then completely crack themselves up. Check out the video after the jump.

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Filed under: Video, Web services, Google, Social Software

Google to buy YouTube--today?

GooTubeThe rumored Google-YouTube acquisition we talked about last week might imminent--perhaps as imminent as later today, according to the New York Times' DealBook blog. DealBook's Andrew Ross Sorkin writes, "Barring a last-minute snag in the talks, the boards of both Google and YouTube were scheduled to hold separate board meetings on Monday to approve the deal, with an announcement possible after the close of regular trading." Michael Arrington's scoop about the merger talks last week reportedly accelerated the schedule for Google's negotiators, who feared a third party swooping in and disrupting the $1.6 billion deal.

In related news, YouTube struck some major media deals today, inking agreements with CBS, Vivendi's Universal Music Group, and Sony BMG. CBS, which already runs its own Innertube video site, will have a branded channel on YouTube starting next month featuring short-form content. The Vivendi deal will put thousands of the record label's music videos online, much like the Warner Music deal reached last month. Likewise, Sony BMG has agreed to put some of its videos online. All three media companies will be sharing advertising revenue with YouTube and allowing Vivendi and Sony BMG will be allowing YouTube users to incorporate the music video content into their own videos.

Filed under: Video, Web services, Google

Rumor Alert: Google to acquire YouTube?

Google + YouTube?TechCrunch's Michael Arrington is reporting on a "completely unsubstantiated" rumor that Google is in the final stages of closing a deal to acquire YouTube for $1.6 billion. He says his source for the rumor is "very good," but that he hasn't been able to get any confirmation. Google certainly has the cash and resources for this kind of transaction, and is probably one of the few companies that isn't scared stupid by the pile of lawsuits that some say loom over YouTube's head, but is YouTube really a fit for Google? Technologically, YouTube doesn't have anything that Google couldn't whip up in a few hours. YouTube does, however, have the social networking savvy that Google has proven itself to be not especially good at. Arrington puts the odds for this rumor at "40% likely to be at least partially true," but my gut says lower--30% or so.

Update: The Wall Street Journal is now reporting that Google and YouTube are indeed in talks, but they are in the early stages and could break off. It quotes the same $1.6 billion figure that Arrington cited.

Featured Time Waster

The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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