Google: Hollywood vs. YouTube video games

Will the Google-YouTube-Copyright Holders video game ever end?

Web surfers will no longer be reliving the magic moments of the 2007 Oscars via YouTube. The vid-viewing site complied with a Tuesday request from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences to remove all unauthorized clips, Variety stated yesterday.

I just relived the not-so-magic of Ellen DeGeneres’ opening monologue, though.

Ric Robertson, Administrator, Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences, said the organization had its content pulled "to help manage the value of our telecast and our (Oscars) brand."

Really? Oscars footage abounds on YouTube.

Both Google and copyright holders continue to play the YouTube video game.

In “Google’s fuzzy YouTube logic” last November, I rebuked one of the first public statements released from the Google owned YouTube, an amalgam of YouTuber viewing stats on CBS owned content headlined “After one month, CBS content among most viewed videos on YouTube, Nearly 30 Million Views Since Partnership Began Oct. 18.”

I said of the YouTube-CBS purported love fest at the time:

Google, YouTube and CBS are currently hanging their video hats on warm and fuzzy “beliefs,” not on hard, trackable conversion metrics. Believing that YouTube “works” brings to mind the “old school” advertising maxim: "I know that half my advertising works - I just don't know which half."”

Google will need to show content owners harder ROI metrics than “beliefs” in order to maximize its own ROI on the $1.65 billion YouTube. 

My analysis of Google’s YouTube stance with CBS last November was reinforced by Wall Street Journal reports last week of tension between CBS-Google-YouTube: “CBS talks go off track.” 

Google’s fuzzy logic on the copyright content protection front is also being called into question by the media companies that own the video content YouTubers want, SEE "Universal Music vs. MySpace, Grouper, Bolt, YouTube?"

Google positions itself as the premier technology company in the world. In terms of market cap Google is number two, only surpassed by Microsoft. 

Nevertheless, Google CEO Eric Schmidt declares “putting the (YouTube fingerprinting) technology to use is a hard problem.” 

Despite Google’s acknowledgement that it is not preventing YouTube uploads of unauthorized copyright video content, it continues to announce content deals touting a YouTube “Claim Your Content” identification and reporting system, as I reported Monday in “YouTube scores NBA deal.”

I recently underscored “Viacom to Google: We’re NOT bluffing!” 

Maybe not bluffing, but not taking decisive action either.

ALSO: Can Google crack $74 billion TV ad market? and Web 2.0: Does ‘old media’ get it?