The Good, The Bad, The Spin

It’s near impossible to know the exact machinations at work in the Viacom/Google lawsuit, but Google’s and Viacom’s comments about the recent order to turn over data underscore an important point: Both entities, in attempting to iron out copyright infringement of commercial videos posted Youtube, appear to be adamant about protecting the identity, and therefore privacy, of individual Youtube users.

This exchange comes from the New York Times:

In a letter sent Thursday, Google’s lawyers pressed their counterparts at Viacom to accept a more limited set of data. “We request that plaintiffs agree that YouTube may redact user names and I.P. addresses from the viewing data in the interests of protecting user privacy,” wrote David H. Kramer, a partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.

In a response, a Viacom lawyer wrote that Viacom was “committed to working with Google” on the privacy issue.

Interestingly, Google has rejected demands by privacy groups for more stringent protections for I.P. address records, saying that in most cases the addresses cannot be used to identify users. Yet Google argued that YouTube viewing data should be kept from Viacom, in part, to protect the privacy of its users.

It is the judge in the case who is disagreeing with Google. Again, from the Times:

Judge Louis L. Stanton of the Southern District of New York, who is presiding over Viacom’s lawsuit against Google and YouTube, referenced Google’s past statements on I.P. addresses to conclude that its “privacy concerns are speculative.”

• This is a double whammy: iPhone users are described as shocked and take matters into their own hands when they receive box-sized bills for their iPhone usage–airtime and Web time. AT&T’s response: this is standard billing practice. Consumer responses: Post a video on Youtube. Both reactions are ridiculous. Consumers know what they are getting. I am very used to scrolling through online ‘agreements’ and clicking the ‘I agree…’ box. My laziness will not be a substitute for later bewilderment, though. For the record: My Verizon bill is normal and (usually) acceptable. My Internet service for my phone is unlimited and no record of my surfing activity is included in my bill. It’s a sensible policy.
• The Bush administration needed better PR advice. It’s possible. Yet, solid practitioners know that PR advice can only go so far when the leader knows best. In other words, surrendering to the realities of groupthink may be the necessary survival strategy for those looking further into the horizon.
• Surprise, surprise: Consumerist notices that organizations are editing Wikipedia entries, and the businesses are doing it anonymously.

A performance artists’ group stages a fake, funny protest at a New York City Wendy’s.  Their claim: Wendy’s is falsely portraying redheads with its use of the Wendy’s logo. More than 50 redheads enact the sidewalk protest.

What would you do if you were doing public relations for Wendy’s? Hopefully laugh. And consider some pigment.