From InternetNews:
Google’s YouTube and a company called Live Digital will offer no refuge to users who uploaded pirated copies of Fox Television’s “24” and “The Simpsons” onto their video platforms.
In an e-mail to internetnews.com, a 20th Century Fox Television spokesperson said that Google and Live Digital complied with subpoenas issued by the U.S. District Court in Northern California and disclosed to Fox the identities of two individuals who illegally uploaded entire episodes of “24” prior to its broadcast and DVD release.
Why all the hysteria over obeying the law? ISP’s, credit card companies, phone companies and just about everyone else who takes some level of liability on behalf of a registered customer complies with these sort of orders. Google and the rest of these comapnies have to keep this sort of info on tap to protect themselves from the actions of their users.
This isn’t to say that fears about the depth and completness of Google’s internal knowledge about a person is’nt something to be worried about, but frankly, I’d be concerned if they didn’t turn over this sort of info.