May 31st, 2007
Google CEO tows Google line at D5
Google CEO Eric Schmidt may have had closing honors at the D5 All Things Digital Conference in San Diego, but he didn’t seize the moment to break new Google ground.
By all accounts of Schmidt’s remarks, he offered up his standard conference circuit pitch.
1) On allegations of “massive copyright infringement” aka Viacom $1 billion dolllar lawsuit.
Schmidt: “We follow the law.”
Translation: Our army of 100+ in-house lawyers fortified by global top tier counsel worldwide will prevail in a courtroom battle proving the Google DMCA interpretation is the right one.
BUT, Vicaom is not the only one suing Google for massive copyright infringement.
Perhaps Walt Mossberg only questioned Schmidt about Viacaom’s lawsuit, but the real story is that the YouTube lawsuits keep coming, as I have been exttensively reporting and analyzing.
SEE: Google at Risk: YouTube class action lawsuit changes DMCA copyright game
What about the Schmidt assertion that Viacom “should have waited” for the Google “tools that are in development.”
Perhaps he was referring to the who knows when YouTube “Claim Your Content” supposed panacea.
I refute that Schmidt story in Google CEO upholds YouTube copyright infringing business model.
2) Google Phone, or not? Of course not, is the Schmidt line. No surprise; I got the scoop straight from the NYC Googleplex in April, when I asked a Google Engineer leading mobile apps efforts.
SEE: Google Engineering: The REAL story
Why such an interest in mobile then? Schmidt presented the case he has made before on the circuit: Widespread cellphone adoption throughout the world, coupled with personalised advertising targeting capabilities, combine for an untapped, lucrative market opportunity.
3) Google is no monoploy predator, aka Microsoft. After all, competition is but a mouse click away. I preempted that Schmidt line, and more, yesterday.
SEE: Why Google is more dangerous than Microsoft
