DMCA take down requests to DMCA take down requests

This article is also available in:
Deutsch: [Google soll Löschanträge löschen | https://www.unwatched.org/EDRigram_11.7_Google_soll_Loeschantraege_loeschen?pk_campaign=edri&pk_kwd=20130410]

Google has recently refused to comply with the take down requests sent
by several copyright holders asking for the taking down of their own
take down requests (under the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act –
DMCA) which have now reached almost 20 million per month.

The reason for these requests is that by Google’s publishing the take
down requests, there is actually a public index of links to alleged
infringing material, thus the take down requests becoming themselves
infringing material.

It is possible that these notices might be a by-product of the automated
tools used to find infringing URLs. But this only reveals the faults of
automated censorship which, in this case, can lead to an endless loop of
DMCA notices, meaning that Google may be asked to remove links to links,
to links…to copyrighted material. Which means that the DMCA procedures
are leading to absurd situations and therefore should be revised.

There is also good news. Not all copyright holders are stuck on the idea
that allegedly illegal downloading is bad for the business.

Talking about the illegal downloading of the Game of the Thrones TV
show, HBO’s president of programming, Michael Lombardo, considered it
rather like a compliment:
“I probably shouldn’t be saying this, but it is a compliment of sorts.
The demand is there. And it certainly didn’t negatively impact DVD
sales. (Piracy is) something that comes along with having a wildly
successful show on a subscription network.”

Lombardo only recognises what net freedom activists and specialists have
kept on saying for some time now. Maybe there is still hope!

Movie Studios Want Google to Take Down Their Own Takedown Request
(4.04.2013)
http://torrentfreak.com/fox-wants-google-to-take-down-its-own-takedown-request-130404/

Movie bosses demand Google take down takedown notices (5.04.2013)
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/04/05/google_takedown_notice_links/