1. A link you might want to read relative to all this. You've probably seen it already, but I thought I'd pass it on.

Go Mavericks.

Posted at 9:19AM on Oct 11th 2006 by Joe Siegler

2. Mark you are right, but I think the effect of people doing this is minimal - IF we could see the decrease in sales of ITunes music since GooTube... I bet it would be minimal and that we couldn't even determine it was becuase of GooTube-

- The thing is the Squeaky wheel gets the grease; GooTube and the operation you described to scrape music from Videos - is a difficult one for the average joe. 80% of your readers on this blog could do it, but 90% of the people in the U.S. aren't literate enough to!

- The only noise GooTube is making is the media noise- If they make it 5-6 months without a major lawsuit, they will start seeing little ones in which they will easily defeat then they will be free and clear. They made major deals with everyone, Google - before the deal and YT - before the deal made deals with 3 companies each! - Therefore there won't be any suits from anyone with enough power to stump Google.

Google is set - to dominate the internet; they will be acquiring 2 more major companies within the next 3 years! -

Thanks for the discussion, Richard Bowles

Posted at 9:20AM on Oct 11th 2006 by tech blog

3. Understand that as a consumer I hate DRM. I hate the fact I just can't rip my CD's to MP3's via WMP and then copy the MP3 over to my iQue M5 to play on there. I have to sync it, which is slower, I'm not talking Dirk Nowitzki slow I'm talking Shaq slow. I understand the point of DRM, but it surely isn't around to help me.

BTW: I agree with Karl on this point: Go Pistons.

Posted at 9:27AM on Oct 11th 2006 by Justin Young

4. Thanks Mark...I've been wanting to get Sexy Back too

Posted at 9:29AM on Oct 11th 2006 by Wes

5. this becomes interesting when people start posting videos in stereo with audio compression that is better than a bad cassette tape.

your point about dodging DRM and RIAA is valid, it's something that all the press is avoiding. A C&D letter or offer to take down a video is the moral equivalence of "it's easier to ask for forgiveness than it is permission."

GooTube's legal position--that hey, they're just a service provider, no different than the ISPs who are trafficing terabytes of copyrighted material 24/7 is going to be tested. Bet your bank on it.

Posted at 9:54AM on Oct 11th 2006 by John Davidson

6. Thanks Mark, why I don't always agree with you, but I do always enjoy your posts, and unlike previous commnetators I think the impact from this will be huge.

The comment by Richard Bowles that few people have the 'know how' to scrape music from the videos is true, so in the short term there will be very little impact. However people will start to figure it out it is amazing what people, even the not so bright among us, can figure out when it comes to getting things for free. So over the long term the impact to music industry will be huge. I will be interested to see how they deal with it, as they will not be able to ignore it for to long.

As more people start to download tunes for free, the music industry will need to either find a way to enforce copyright, or find alternative ways to generate revenue from their content.

Posted at 10:01AM on Oct 11th 2006 by Lach

7. Mark:

Great comments and observations… It still amazes me that Silicon Valley does not understand Hollywood’s concern about DRM and copyright ownership. I started my career in Hollywood and understand royalties, residual checks and copyright issues due to fact you spend a majority of your time “clearing” music and films rights and working with the WGA, AFTRA, SAG etc. Wait until they get fully involved in this – that is another “time bomb” waiting to explode.

Silicon Valley is built on software licensing which basically follows the same business model (i.e., royalties / licensing fees etc.). You would think they would understand the issue. Likewise, I’ve witnessed the same “pig headed” myopic thinking coming from Hollywood. (you are doing a great job trying to change that thinking). I agree with you, once the copyright holders bring the “hammer down” and enforce basic copyright protection laws. The majority of Video Portals like Gootube will see a huge drop in “viewers”.

Question: Why is it that revver.com is not blowing the doors off the other Video Portals due to the fact that they split the revenue with the “author”. . I would rather “host” my video on revver.com and get a cut of the profits. Could it be that there really is not that much “free and cleared” / Public Domain video out there?

Matt Cook

Posted at 10:22AM on Oct 11th 2006 by Matt Cook

8. As a 3L studying IP, I'm very interested in this particular sequence of blogs. In a post-napster/grokster world there hasn't been a juicy marketplace for infringement that right holders could attack in litigation. I believe the trend was, and still is, going to be going after individual users in order to create a chilling effect. However, with google, i'm not convinced they NEED to have a viable business model in order to be sued (DMCA allows rights holders to forgo calculating damages in favor of a preset statutory fine). So Ballmer, who is also somewhat incredulous that there is an actual long term plan here, http://yahoo.businessweek.com/technology/content/oct2006/tc20061011_940241.htm,
may have understated it when he said that they will incur short term losses. I look forward to reading that SEC filing as well.

Posted at 10:24AM on Oct 11th 2006 by justin brown

9. "the operation you described to scrape music from Videos - is a difficult one for the average joe. 80% of your readers on this blog could do it, but 90% of the people in the U.S. aren't literate enough to!"

How long will it take for someone to write a freeware program that makes quicklisting a click 'n drag operation, and then automates the whole extraction and transfer process? Is that a 2-day job, or only 1-day?

The paid version of the program could automate the search, compare audio quality if multiple sources are found, and then do the extraction and transfer.

If 90% of the people can't do something, that's a market.

Posted at 11:20AM on Oct 11th 2006 by Michael Murphy

10. Uh yeah-except the quality of your resulting movie and sound files are awful. You could tape them from the radio and probably get better quality. Really-there has always been an analog hole or a quality hole available. If you are satisfied with watching and listening to junk then lots of junk is available to you.

Posted at 11:39AM on Oct 11th 2006 by Rodolfo

11. Mark, do you run a SAN at home?

Posted at 11:52AM on Oct 11th 2006 by Mark McKenney

12. I find it interesting that Google chose to acquire Youtube (about which many copyright issues have been raised) when it is also getting sued by book publishers for digitizing whole books.

Makes you wonder whether Google is trying to turn the copyright law onto its head.

Posted at 12:18PM on Oct 11th 2006 by Anonymous

13. I decided to go "shopping" for music. Pre radio, I would have gone to the record store and skipped around looking for new music. Sample it and if i like it , buy it. I usually start at the top of the Top Songs record pile and if I like it , I buy it. So for this shopping trip, as I write this, I hope in my car, to drive to the store, and I have FM radio on. All in buttons in my dashboard. It's in stereo, not like that crummy AM, it sounds great! Even better, in my home I have a stereo with a boss new tapedeck hooked up. With wires! I could just have easily used a boombox that has a tapedeck built into it, or any number of others that work as easily. A simple spin of the dial finds a ton of options for all different genres of music.

Oops. That audio is taped and in my tape deck already. Tape recorders are a kick ass technology. It can combine bits of audio, it can record only when I want. That is coming in handy right now because I just got to have Sexy Back from Justin, and it just came on Clear Channel radio. Boom. Its in my tapedeck.

But wait there's more. This satellite radio is kickass from Sirius or FM ! They have these stations that play nothing but music in the style I like, no interruptions. Just press record, and I've got a kick ass mix tape. The beauty of satellite radio! Am I a smart consumer or what.

DAMN, something just occured to me. I can move the money I spend from the music budget over to the Dairy Queen Blizzard budget i had previous decimated to fill my cd and record bins. ! I really miss Heath and Reese Cup Blizzards, thank you radio and audio tapes!!!...

Posted at 12:56PM on Oct 11th 2006 by James Cooney

14. What seems to be missing from the discussions is the idea that Google just doesn't care about harming copyrights holders, especially us "little guys." In their view (and that of some of those who want "free" stuff), artists, musicians, authors, writers, performers, and anyone else who might need (or have a legitimate right) to a royalty check for years of practice, work, and plain old-fashioned sweat -- not to mention the tears -- should "go get a real job."

As to "taking down material when the legitimate rights-holder complains, -- just try to get them to do it. ha! They have a staff of lawyers which they pay handsomely to make life miserable for any creative who complains. The process is cost prohibitive for any but the wealthy -- and golly gosh, without those royalty checks, there wouldn't be any "wealthy artists."

On that note, I would like to invite all of those who would like to have "free" music and movies to copy and share with their friends to donate generously at my upcoming rent party. Ooops, my landlord is howling at the door! ... got to run!

Posted at 1:16PM on Oct 11th 2006 by Terri M.

15. Why all the hassle when you can get the album for free or the movie by just typing it in the search engine of Ares, or Emule ?

Posted at 1:18PM on Oct 11th 2006 by Balde

16. JT Sexy Back??........Come on man!

Posted at 1:34PM on Oct 11th 2006 by nick

17. As the old saying goes, where there's a will there's a way. These days, where there's a will there's a way... and a program to help you do it.

Posted at 1:53PM on Oct 11th 2006 by Rebeccalee Coventry

18. What if they started putting up video from Mavericks games?

I guess some people already have some NBA video, like this mix of Jordan and LeBron accompanying Jay-Z and Linkin Park.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5ri7t03Iss

Here's your ticket Mark, have the NBA sue.

Posted at 2:03PM on Oct 11th 2006 by mba

19. Mac users can rock Tubesock to get videos from Youtube into their ipods.

Posted at 2:40PM on Oct 11th 2006 by H

20. http://www.gootube.net/

Good post Mark. I figure eventually you won't need other programs to convert files or merge them. If it's all allowed, then why not make them built-in features?

Posted at 3:05PM on Oct 11th 2006 by Shan