• TechWeb, Monday, January 8, 2007 11 AM

YouTube has defended its attempts to remove the sex video of Brazilian model Daniela Cicarelli and her boyfriend Tato Malzoni. In an email response to Reuters' Friday report, the company said it had removed the video only for it to be uploaded again.

"The video in question was removed from YouTube because it violated our terms of use," YouTube spokesperson Jaime Schopflin said. "It was recently uploaded again, and we became aware of it through media reports and users flagging the content, and we removed these copies immediately."

It looks like YouTube's few censors are no match for its thousands of Brazilian users. That's distressing news for YouTube and Google, especially because Brazil makes up such a small fraction of the site's user base. Big media, with whom both companies are going to great lengths to find a partnership, will not be amused by its inability to handle this situation.

Cicarelli, the model, is seeking $116,000 in damages every day the video remains on the site. (It's been on for months.) Brazilian courts recently ordered that YouTube be shut down until the matter is resolved, but it's unlikely that ruling can be enforced, since YouTube is based in the United States.

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