Daynas_Karew

Hmmm, could go either way, really. However, Viacom are most likely going to get it. Every TV channel that airs its TV shows has a binding contract with Viacom, and pays a set amount dependant on the number of plays per show. Now, with the amount of people who log on to YouTube, you could assume that each of the shows in question is viewed a minimum of 50 times a day since inception. Viacom are not being paid anything in royalites or agreed fees for their intellectual property, and with the amount of videos being shown, I reckon they could easily justify the $1.52 billion they're demanding. Saying that it's impossible to stop copyright infringement due to file sharing is pure rubbish; Napster, Morpheus, WinMX... need I go on? A website booms in traffic, it becomes a target for the money grabbing Big Corporates. The crux of Viacom's arguement will be this; by allowing ANY video to be uploaded, they've opened the doors to major copyright infringement. Since day 1, they should have put checks and vets in place to make sure that copyrighted intellectual property is not displayed without permission. I know people are saying "You can't expect them to trawl through thousands of videos", but the truth is Yes, they can, and Yes, they should. As to YouTube being the end? Sincerely doubtful. it's not exactly Chicken Feed, but the amount Google is making via advertising is far offsetting it. Expect some tighter security measures or user fees in the near future...