Fred von Lohmann
Aritcle: July 10, 2006
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002802746

    This article, written by Fred von Lohmann, briefly overviews the YouTube company and its legal liability as an online host of material, specifically videos.  Lohmann attempts to explore how YouTube stands under protection by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) from copyright infringement cases.  He outlines and gives examples of how YouTube could be violating copyright laws but also explains why its existence might be a protected under fair use.  YouTube could be responsible for countless charges, as it hosts infringing copyrighted and unlicensed material, but as an online-service provider, it is protected by the DMCA from the habits of users.
    The author then goes on to explain the terms under which online hosts are protected from damage costs, if their users do infringe copyright laws.  These services must be able to notify users and remove from the system any material claimed to be of copyright infringement by an owner.  YouTube must also terminate users deemed to be repeat infringers.  Additionally, protection will be removed if YouTube is aware of any associated piracy or illegal activity.  Finally, if there are any revenue-generating ads closely tied to infringing activity, protection would be lifted.
    This poses a problem, as much revenue is generated for YouTube by ads.  As a result, ads can only be placed on search result pages and not those of clips.  YouTube must use caution as a growing business by specifying the placement of ads before, during and after videos.  Lohmann also provides a few examples of how YouTube could generate revenue through careful advertising, such as the use of the “featured videos” section. 
    Relating to my paper, this article articulates points crucial to the understanding of the simple arguments on both sides of whether YouTube exists as a safe and legal organization.  It outlines the business concerns on which YouTube’s liability dependent.  This article shows how it is important to explore the many aspects of the company that would affect it’s status under the DMCA’s requirements.