From the BBC:
Entertainment giant Viacom Media says it will sue web search engine Google and its video-sharing website YouTube for $1bn (£517m).
Viacom, which owns MTV and Nickelodeon, says YouTube uses its shows illegally.
Viacom alleges that about 160,000 unauthorised clips of its programmes have been loaded onto YouTube’s site and viewed more than 1.5 billion times.
Google says it is “confident” that YouTube has respected the legal rights of copyright holders.
As well as more than $1bn in damages, the legal action seeks an injunction to prevent what Viacom calls “massive intentional copyright infringement”.
Dave Winer’s view:
Obviously this is a negotiation, either that or Viacom is jumping off the bridge and hoping that the fall doesn’t kill them.