Commentary

Just An Online Minute... YouTube's Saga Continues

YouTube's relationship with big media is nothing if not fluid.

Yesterday, The New York Times reported that YouTube was in the process of excising Viacom video, including clips from "South Park," "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report."

But by this morning, the situation had apparently changed. Today's New York Post reported that Viacom only had an issue with entire programs on the site, not short clips. In fact, a search on YouTube Tuesday turned up a number of clips from both "Colbert" and the "Daily Show."

Of course, the situation could change again by the time this column hits your e-mail in-boxes. For the last several months, big media companies have been noisily threatening YouTube with litigation; two YouTube competitors--Grouper Networks and Bolt Media--currently face lawsuits.

While there's a rumor traveling around the blogosphere that Google convinced big media companies to give YouTube a six-month grace period from copyright lawsuits when it agreed to acquire the company, like much other blogger gossip, it's unsubstantiated.

Meanwhile, it appears certain that media conglomerates are negotiating with YouTube for some type of revenue-sharing deal.

The ultimate shape of these deals, just like the ultimate shape of YouTube, remains unknown. But Viacom and other companies should remember that YouTube and other video sharing sites give them and their stars exposure they could never get just on Comedy Central.





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