No real surprises emerged in Google’s response to Viacom’s billion-dollar copyright infringement lawsuit against YouTube: Google denied Viacom’s claims and asked for a jury trial.
Google Answers Viacom Lawsuit
Denial: it’s not just a river in Egypt, as comedians would say. It’s also Google’s reply to the lawsuit Viacom brought against YouTube in New York.
In Google’s reply to the action brought by Viacom, Reuters reported that Google denied virtually all of Viacom’s infringement accusations, and tossed back one of their own:
“By seeking to make carriers and hosting providers liable for Internet communications, Viacom’s complaint threatens the way hundreds of millions of people legitimately exchange information, news, entertainment and political and artistic expression,” Google said in answer to Viacom’s March 13 suit.
Google’s selection of lawyers for the case offers an interesting little insight. CEO Eric Schmidt’s affection and generosity for Democrats is widely known; he hosted an Al Gore fundraiser during Gore’s Presidential run.
One of the attorneys representing Google will be Philip Beck of law firm Bartlit Beck, who argued President George W. Bush’s side in the Florida vote-counting case following the 2000 election. As people will remember, Gore came out on the short side of that decision.
Forbes writer Lisa Lerer discussed Beck and other lawyers taking part in the case, which she predicts will settle. “All the lawyers expect a tough legal fight,” she wrote. “They’re also sure of something else: a serious financial windfall.”
