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Testimony begins Tuesday in the Italian trial of four Google executives accused of defamation and violating privacy for allowing a video to be posted online showing an autistic youth being abused.
All four deny wrongdoing. The case could set the tone for new limits on sharing videos and other content on the web.
Google says the case violates European Union rules by trying to place responsibility on providers for content uploaded by users.
The Mountain View, Calif., company also considers the trial a threat to freedom on the Internet because it could force providers into an impossible task - prescreening the thousands of hours of footage uploaded every day onto websites like the Google-owned YouTube.
Prosecutors and civil plaintiffs insist they don't want to censor the Internet, and maintain the case is about enforcing Italy's privacy rules as well as ensuring large corporations do their utmost to block inappropriate content, or quickly delete it.
"It's the first case of this kind in Italy and Europe," said Alessandro del Ninno, a lawyer and expert on Internet law. "The risk is that it will force providers to preventively control the content, something that goes against the very nature of the Internet."
The defendants, who are being tried in absentia in Milan, are Google's senior vice-president and chief legal officer David Drummond, former chief financial officer George Reyes, senior product marketing manager Arvind Desikan and global privacy counsel Peter Fleischer.
The investigation was sought by Vivi Down, an advocacy group for people with Down syndrome, which alerted prosecutors to the 2006 video showing an autistic student in Turin being beaten and insulted by bullies at school. In the footage, the youth is being mistreated while one of the teenagers puts in a mock telephone call to Vivi Down.
The events shortly preceded Google's 2006 acquisition of YouTube.
Google Italia, which is based in Milan, eventually took down the video, though the two sides disagree on how fast the company reacted to complaints. Thanks to the footage and Google's co-operation, the four bullies were identified and sentenced to community service by a juvenile court.
But prosecutors also sought trial for the Google executives, who could face up to three years in jail, for failing to protect the youth's privacy by allowing the video to be uploaded.
"We feel that bringing this case to court is totally wrong," Google said in a statement ahead of Tuesday's session. "It's akin to prosecuting mail service employees for hate speech letters sent in the post."
"Seeking to hold neutral platforms liable for content posted on them is a direct attack on a free, open Internet," it said.
The trial opened in February, with the court so far dealing with procedural matters. In Tuesday's session a company technician is expected to take the stand to explain how Google Video works.
A ruling is expected in July or after a summer break.
The family of the youth withdrew from the trial when it opened, leaving Vivi Down as the main plaintiff in a civil lawsuit attached to the case.
"It is not correct to talk about censorship, this is not our goal," said Guido Camera, a lawyer for the group. "We ask that at least users be made aware of their responsibilities."
Prosecutors say they are aware Google cannot screen all videos, but maintain the company didn't have enough automatic filters in place as well as warnings to users on privacy and copyright laws. They also say Google didn't have enough workers assigned to its Italian service in order to react quickly to videos flagged as inappropriate by viewers.
Madonna's record label is pulling her videos from YouTube.com
Several artists, including Madonna, Led Zeppelin and James Blunt, are seeing their videos vanish from the popular video sharing website (one of my favorites as well!) YouTube, following a dispute between their record company and the site, reports FemaleFirst.
Management at Warner Music has decided to remove the artists' promotional videos, after negotiations failed for a new contract with site's owners regarding downloading rights. "We simply cannot accept terms that fail to appropriately and fairly compensate recording artists, songwriters, labels and publishers for the value they provide," folks at Warner Music stated.
But let's hold up for just a second...Time out! everyone back to there own corners...
Not fairly compensating What the artists, songwriters, labels and publishers provide? What about what the website DOES provide to them? it can be argued that today, more then music videos on MTV/MuchMusic, or the radio... People are turning to the web for information on the newest releases by the artists. Youtube is an invaluable marketing source for the artists, labels and publishers in getting the word out about the newest hits. One of the best things about it? It costs nothing to upload the videos as opposed to buying airtime on the television and radio stations. They are also able to reach a far wider audience through the website then they would have through the television and radio spots (where they would have to hope that people are listening to those particular stations, or are tuned to those particular channels at the time that the videos and songs are airing) With Youtube, people would be coming online looking for them, guaranteeing that the video is seen, and the song is heard.
Instead of arguing with each other, and complaining back and forth, instead recognize that in the 2.0 world that this is the way to now reach there intended audience and embrace it. Instead of complaining when public users are posting videos of there favorite musicians hottest videos, the artists, labels and publishers need to "beat them to the punch" :
- Have there own account on youtube.com
- Upload the videos on there own when new songs and videos are released, or promotional videos when one is about to come out, create a real buzz about it, give people a taste of the upcoming release.
- Watermark each of there own videos so that people know that this is an official, approved release by the artist / label / publisher.
- promote there other videos and artists through there accounts, as I said before, no real worry about the videos not being seen because people that WANT to see them, WILL come see them! 
The same people that are viewing the videos on youtube, are the same people that are going to the concerts, buying the tickets, filling the seats, buying the merchandise, standing in long lines for when there favorite artists are in town for any reason, be it a concert, an autograph signing, or just there!These fans are what "make" the artists.
They are the ones who decide who's hot, and who's not.
Without these fans buying the tickets, without them filling the seats at the concerts, the merchandise, being at autograph signings... The artist wouldn't have a career, they'd be a bust!
Youtube has kept alive, elongated (and maybe, in some cases, even revived) the careers of some of these artists.
It can be argued (quite strongly) that without youtube, many of these artists's (including some of the ones that are complaining about there music being on the popular website) careers would already be over. Considered a part of the past, With the way entertainment is now, with youth being a really big thing (you may not want to, but you have to admit it, youth rules the industry)
These artists are still around, in part due to the popularity of Youtube.
The fans that have been following them throughout there careers over the years and decades, have continued to follow them, and kept them as popular as ever, online.
You can still find older hits from the artists (arguably there best, or more better work) on youtube.
Youtube is another reason why Elvis, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and so many others still have growing fan bases even today, on the heels of 2009!
But for now... The gloves are off...
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