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Media giant Viacom went on a search and destroy mission on November 1, 2006 when it issued DMCA takedown notices to force Youtube to remove videos taken from the Colbert Report. Unfortunately, in addition to targetting videos that contained nothing but clips from the Colbert Report, they also targeted videos that made Fair Use of the show as well. Amongst the targeted videos were the following four by LiberalViewer.
Did James Carville Out-Colbert Stephen Colbert?
The Daily Show Reminds Us that NAMBLA is a Joke
Fox News Edits Criticism of Bush Out of Daily Show Clip
Fox News Softens Criticism of Bush from Daily Show AGAIN
LiberalViewer decided not to take this sitting down, and the day after Youtube sent him four notices that his videos had been removed for copyright violations, LiberalViewer fired back by filing four Counternotices. According to the DMCA, Youtube was supposed to restore the videos between 10 and 14 business days after receiving the Counternotices unless Viacom notified Youtube that they were filing a lawsuit against LiberalViewer. Viacom never filed a lawsuit, so Youtube restored the videos promptly. Right?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Well, they would have had Youtube's Copyright Compliance department been competent. But what happens next is unbelievable. Fortunately, LiberalViewer documented his Youtube experience better than I could, so I invite you to watch his video discussing the matter and visit his website.
Not only did Youtube fail to restore his videos, they suspended his account in February 2007 when 13 more of his videos were taken down in a MASSIVE Viacom Dragnet. Youtube didn't repost LiberalViewers original four videos until FOUR MONTHS after he filed his Counternotice. What's more surprising is that LIBERALVIEWER HAD TO WRITE TO YOUTUBE'S COPYRIGHT DEPARTMENT IN ORDER TO TEACH THEM HOW COPYRIGHT LAW WAS SUPPOSED TO WORK!!!!! Don't believe me? Well, check out this correspondence between Youtube and LiberalViewer. Pay close attention to this laugher, presumably writen by Youtube's copyright lawers.
We're sure you can appreciate that YouTube is in no position to analyze and then negotiate and/or litigate on behalf of each of our individual users whether each of the approximately 65,000 clips posted to our site each day constitutes a "fair use" under copyright law. Such an undertaking would require an army of lawyers and untold sums of money in litigation fees.
Anyone who has studied even the basics of the mechanics of the DMCA would know that this is false. But I probably shouldn't have been too shocked when I read about incompetence in Youtube's copyright office. After all, I have had my own very special correspondence with Harry, the Youtube Lawyerbot.
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