So the big news kicking off this week is Google acquires YouTube to the tune of $1.65 billion (the people who sold MySpace must be kicking themselves) and for months to come, people will be debating whether or not this was a smart choice for Google. Mark Cuban has publicly questioned the intelligence of anyone who would buy YouTube and despite the acquisition, his opinion still remains the same.
Yes, it would be foolish to imagine YouTube would not face any lawsuits but that's not to say other video sites are immune either. A quick search on Google Video and even MSN Soapbox (I got a beta invite today) brings up potentially litigious material. Instead of waiting for the lawsuits to find their way down the food chain of video sharing sites, it's probably better to face it head on. As long as Google/YouTube remain pro-active in mitigating the threat of lawsuits, they may become the pioneers in navigating through the minefield of litigation while leaving their competition in dust.
At the end of the day, I don't think it was a bad move for Google considering they now own more than 50% of the online video market share. They still have an uphill battle ahead but like I said before, it is companies like Google who have the influence and resources behind them to come out on top. Check out the message from the smiling YouTube founders.
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