Google handed extended deadline in Viacom lawsuit

by Staff, Brand Republic 25-Feb-08, 10:45

NEW YORK - Google has been given a further two months to hand over documents for Viacom's $1bn (£509m) lawsuit over copyright infringement by its YouTube service after a federal judge extended the deadline.

The internet giant's attorneys had asked for the March 7 due date for both sides to be pushed back by three months because they were sorting through 4.5m documents.

Andrew Schapiro, an attorney for law firm Mayer Brown which represents Google, told the New York Southern District Court: "It's a daunting task."

The new deadline has been set for May 9.

Viacom launched its lawsuit against Google's YouTube service in March last year, accusing the video-sharing website of "massive intentional copyright infringement" by showing almost 160,000 unauthorised clips from its programmes, which include shows such as 'Jackass', 'Beavis and Butt-head' and 'SpongeBob SquarePants'.

Google is citing the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act in its defence, saying it acts quickly to remove unauthorised content as soon as copyright owners notify YouTube that it is online.