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English Premier League Suing YouTube
For Alleged Copyright Infringement
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The Premier League is suing YouTube for “alleged copyright infringement,” claiming
the Web site has “‘knowingly misappropriated’ its intellectual property by encouraging
footage to be viewed on its site,” according to the London TELEGRAPH. The suit,
filed in U.S. District Court in N.Y. by both the Premier League and music publisher
Bourne, seeks class-action status and “asks for a disgorgement of profits made
by the alleged actions, as well as unspecified damages.” Google, YouTube’s parent
company, is also cited in the lawsuit, and Google General Counsel Kent Walker
said, “These suits simply misunderstand the Digital Millennium Copyright Act,
which balances the rights of copyright holders against the need to protect internet
communications and content.” Walker: “They threaten the way people legitimately
exchange information, news, entertainment, and political and artistic expression
over the internet” (
TELEGRAPH.co.uk, 5/5). In London, Richard Osley reported
a video clip of “nearly every Premiership goal was uploaded to the site” last
weekend. The clips are “largely put together by fans from official footage and
uploaded into segments rarely longer than five minutes.” The Premier League’s
worldwide TV, radio and Internet rights are worth a combined US$5.3B for the next
three years (
London INDEPENDENT, 5/6). The BBC currently cannot show footage
of Premier League goals on its Web site. However, beginning next year, some games
will be “streamed on broadband as simulcasts with the TV programmes for UK users
-– meaning all the Premiership goals will be available online for the first time
in the UK” (
BBC.co.uk, 5/5).
