Posts by Mark Mulligan from July 03, 2008

Mark Mulligan | July 03, 2008, 06:15 PM
Viacom Taking Lessons from the RIAA?

The BBC reports that a court has just ruled that Google hand over details of every video ever watched on YouTube to Viacom. Yes , you read correctly, every video ever watched. But most importantly details of every viewer (including IP addresses) are also to be handed over.

Viacom’s dispute with Google centres around unlicensed MTV music video clips on YouTube / Viacom getting leverage to get a better deal (inc equity stake?) for licensing content to YouTube (delete as appropriate depending on your degree of cynicism). But this disclosure of user information adds a new twist. Are Viacom planning an RIAA style campaign against the heavy uploaders of infringing content and subpoenaing billing address from ISPs? Currently they claim they have no interest in doing so. But if they did, or if another content owner with unresolved claims (e.g. the UK’s Football Premier League) similarly pursued the information in order to pursue individuals the implications could be big for YouTube. YouTube has done a really good job of transitioning towards legitimacy, despite the fact that there is still widespread un-licensed professional content on its site. It doesn’t look or feel like an illegal content destination to users and its corporate parentage, numerous content licenses and established relationships with many content owners certainly give it significant legitimacy. But, if YouTube users start finding themselves subject to the same sort of legal action as Kazaa users, the site could start feeling very different to consumers.

Mark Mulligan | July 03, 2008, 08:29 AM
BPI Steps Up Activity Against File Sharers

The BBC is reporting - online , on-radio and on-TV – on the thousands of letters to be sent out to illegal file sharers in UK on behalf of the BPI. 800 have already been sent out via Virgin Media. These are first steps, and though already criticized, the libertarians (mischievously referred to as ‘Freetards’ in some circles) should consider the comparatively liberal nature of the approach currently being pursued compared to those in the US and in France.

Realistically speaking the UK music industry’s activity with ISPs (in its current cooperative phase at least) will not turn off the tap on the majority of file sharing (it will of course never be completely turned off, but no one is aiming for that). The activity does, though, have realistic chances have having meaningful impact.

The low hanging fruit are the (conscientious) families of file sharing kids. Imagine the situation: mum or dad picks up a letter from the door mat on the way out to work, realizing to their shock that their kids are using illegal file sharing networks. Not only are they likely to enforce some household discipline they’ll be amenable to paying an extra pound or two a month for a music service from their ISP which will give their kids some sort of alternative, and keep them off the virtual streets.

These may sound like modest objectives, but trimming a few percentage points off UK file sharing penetration and converting a share of those to new music services will have a meaningful impact on the UK music market, and will be an important first step in the broader process. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the next potential target groups (students away from home, independent young adults, Carphone Warehouse customers etc.) will prove far more challenging quarry.