Most Recent Bust in Streaming Video

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2007/oct/19/digitalmedia.media

Above is a link to an article covering the most recent Raid and Arrest of the proprietor of a 'Pirate' website called www.tv-links.co.uk. This particular website, which was shutdown in October 2007, hosted links that linked to online streaming video that often was copyrighted material. Tvlinks.co.uk in fact did not host any copyrighted material itself, but only linked to other sites such as Youtube/Google Video, Dailymotion, and many other websites that allow uploading of videos.

What is special about this case is that instead of the authorities going after the sites that host the copyrighted material, they went after the fact that the site did "contribute to and profit from copyright infringement by identifying, posting, organising, and indexing links to infringing content found on the internet that users can then view on demand by visiting these illegal sites."

This arrest of a 26 year old man was the first of the UK's crackdown on such a site. It is claimed that the website enabled users of the site to evade and break copyright fees and laws by hosting these links to uploaded streaming video on other sites. The real problem is that arresting an operator of such a site makes the act of "linking" illegal. The real problem with that is the fact that no one ever really knows what site and/or material will pop-up with different links especially links for porn and advertising, anything could pop up, and if it’s a site that hosts illegal material who will the authorities arrest next. Essentially, sites like Tvlinks.co.uk, in the eyes of the law, are aiding and 'embedding' ;) criminals which are the users of their site.

On the other hand, why have not the authorities gone after Gooogle for hosting the copyrighted material that is being infringed upon. Gooogle does have webmasters and editors or whatever the title is (let's call its Content Monkey) to screen and find copyrighted material that should have not been uploaded. But, the amount of material that is uploaded surely overwhelms the Content Monkeys, because I can find with just a blank search under the genre "MOVIE_FEATURE" that 7 out of the first 10 videos are copyrighted material and in full length...I didn't have to link from anywhere....Godspeed!

Don't link this...i might get arrested
http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=genre%3AMOVIE_FEATURE+&sitesearch=video.google.com