14 DAY TRIAL // Google and Microsoft joined their forces to release 'Defend Fair Use', a special website that is meant to fight against the copyright abuse launched by some organizations or companies. Actually, the two rivals aim to help the users by allowing them to send petitions which will be then sent to the FTC to inform them about the abuses of copyright made by some firms. "We will gather all comments into a complete record, submit them to the Commission and demand action on behalf of everyone who ever bought something with an exaggerated copyright notice," it is mentioned on the main page of Defend Fair Use.
The page even has some abuse examples that are meant to support the recently released initiative in its effort to bring more consumers to the website. "The NFL tells viewers, in effect, that they may not talk about the game with their friends without permission. Try as it might, the NFL does not have complete control over any pictures, descriptions, or accounts of football games. Despite what they tell you, your account of the game over the workplace watercooler is not a felony," one of the messages reads.
Google is quite used to copyright complaints because it was often sent to the judge, being accused by people from all around the world for copyright infringement. As you've probably heard, YouTube is the main cause of the lawsuits because multiple companies sustained Google published clips on the video sharing platform without their authorization. The last impressive lawsuit is the one filed by Viacom, the owner of MTV and Comedy Central, which also demanded $1 billion in damages.
But this time, Google and Microsoft seems to be prepared to fight against the abuses and wants to stop this phenomenon. "These warnings intimidate average people and hinder free expression. They depict as illegal many legitimate and beneficial uses made possible by the high-tech industry, and cast a pall over the high-tech marketplace represented by the Computer & Communications Industry Association. Moreover, these misleading warnings represent an assault on the open communications and free expression vital to our society," the official page of the service states.