And so it begins: YouTube nukes 30,000 videos

YouTube has removed nearly 30,000 videos after being contacted by the Japan Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers.

And so it begins: YouTube nukes 30,000 videos

Long before Google swooped in to buy up YouTube there were questions about the video sharing site’s future. In particular, concerns relating to copyright infringement have persisted: can YouTube be sued, will they be sued? Will a sanitized YouTube be interesting? The recent acquisition by Google all but ensures that the site will remain under the infringe-o-scope of copyright holders for the near future.

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As usual there is more to the story … namely the “money” factor…

Music Companies Seized a Part of YouTube

Now we know why Grouper and Bolt.com were sued this week, while YouTube escaped unharmed. On the morning of the YouTube-Google acquisition, a collection of deals with record labels were announced – as it turns out, the events weren’t totally separate. Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and Sony BMG each received a small stake in YouTube, and collectively stand to make up to $50 million from the sudden jump in the company’s value.