Why it matters what Chad Hurley watches

What will it mean for YouTube if founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen have, like many of us, entertained themselves by watching pirated videos found on their site? Viacom will likely argue that YouTube is guilty of contributory copyright infringement if computer records show employees know unauthorized clips from shows, such as Hogan Knows Best, or The Hills, are on the site and don't do anything to remove them. According to legal experts, YouTube's response is likely to go something like this: "How are we supposed to know what's copyright material and what isn't?" The site is a promotional tool for scores of TV networks and movie studios, which often post their own videos. The battle royal between Viacom and Google is heating up. In the past few weeks, there's been fewer aggressive moves in a mixed-martial arts match. The... [read full story]