YouTube to remove 100,000 videos

February 2, 2007 Yesterday, YouTube was told by Viacom Inc. to remove over 100,000 video clips thought to possibly feature content produced by Viacom owned companies after the two failed to reach an agreement for revenue sharing. Viacom said its content posted without permission on YouTube generate about 1.2 billion video streams, based on a study from an outside consultant.

Viacom owns popular American companies such as MTV, Black Entertainment Television (BET) and Nickelodeon.

Many users on YouTube upload copyrighted videos without permission everyday, sometimes unknowingly.

"YouTube and Google retain all of the revenue generated from this practice, without extending fair compensation to the people who have expended all of the effort and cost to create it," said Viacom in a statement.

"It's unfortunate that Viacom will no longer be able to benefit from YouTube's passionate audience which has helped to promote many of Viacom's shows," a YouTube spokesperson said. "We will continue to work with content partners large and small to provide them with a platform to promote their content and engage and grow their audiences."

Companies such as CBS have reached deals with YouTube over using their content.