Veoh Handed Victory in Universal Suit

LOS ANGELES: A federal judge has dismissed a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by Universal Music Group against Veoh Networks, ruling that the online video site had taken steps to remove unauthorized content.

The ruling deemed Veoh to be in compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) with respect to the handling of claims of copyright infringement and terminating repeat infringers. The judge noted a prior federal court’s opinion about Veoh, which stated that “the record presented demonstrates that, far from encouraging copyright infringement, Veoh has a strong DMCA policy, takes active steps to limit incidents of infringement on its website and works diligently to keep unauthorized works off its website. In sum, Veoh has met its burden in establishing its entitlement to safe harbor for the alleged infringements here.”

“This is a great victory for Veoh that allows us to continue our focus on innovation in online video, unshackled by the distraction of this lawsuit,” said Dmitry Shapiro, Veoh’s founder and CEO. “We can continue to support our many content partners, including Disney, CBS, Viacom, Sony and Time Warner, who understand the need to innovate and work together to create value in the emerging business of Internet distribution. From an industry perspective, this decision is a big deal as well, as we now have a second clear victory showing that companies who work diligently to respect property owners and the DMCA will be able to run their businesses and be successful without the fear of those select content owners who may be uncomfortable with emerging technology.”