Italian Court Convicts Google Employees Over Google Video

[Archemetis]

Surely the Google employees can claim the same thing that Facebook did when Jack Thompson was going to take them to court for the whole "Hit him in the head with an Atari" group.

The Site provides a service, it has it's own laws that it enforces and I'm sure complies to the laws set out by the country of origins as well as international laws. But it is in no way liable for the actions of it's community.

I don't see how they even found a connection to these four employees and the video in the first place...
Is this just a case of:

Italian law system: Well we've run out of people to convict for things, look in the stupid drawer... Well, well, well... seems we have that Google video thing from 3 years ago Let's choose some random foreigners to chase up about this...

Google: What the fuck?

 

[qbanknight]

a bunch of punk italians made a dick-headed video and the platform is the blame? why not convict the camera manufacturer for enabling the video to happen in the first place? why not sue the store that sold the camera to the punk? where does the line end? this is a completely unfair decision, that Google (with all the millions it thankfully has) will be sure to appeal. maybe they might take it the highest european courts as well

 

[MrPop]

What did the charges result in towards the Google employees? Was it a fine or worse?

This is an extremely illogical judgement. I wonder whether the judge and jury are a bit out of touch seeing as they don't seem to grasp how Google cannot screen every single video uploaded to their site.

 

[Zac_Dai]

People should take this seriously, groups that represent the music and film industry have plans for pushing through laws that allow them to sue for the same reasons.

It would be death of the internet and freedom for sure.

 

[Beowulf DW]

That's retarded. The kids shouldn't face any criminal charges to begin with. Sure, the school should take disciplinary action against them but bullying is a sad fact of life. Sure, these kids are assholes, but they should have the right to be assholes all they want. That's the price of freedom.

Uh, no. That behaviour is vile, and needs to be cut out like a cancer, not coddled.

Exactly.

We all have a right to freedom, and we all have a right to "the pursuit of happiness." When you use your freedom to impede others in their pursuit of happiness, you get punished. No one has the right to bully another person, or inflict mental and physical trauma on a person. In extreme cases like that one, criminal charges are more than justified.

 

[The DSM]

... It doesnt even begin to make sence.

So what, if I kill someone, film it and put it on youtube they take the fall?

hmm... This could work in my favour....

 

[DJPirtu]

Well, everybody's voiced their opinion about how this ruling is dumb, so I'll go a little further and ask if there has been an explanation by the judge about this ruling and why it was made. The ruling baffles me and I really want to see how it came about.

This.

I have to assume that the guy wasn't a complete idiot. He is a judge after all. So what kind of case was represented to him so that he decided that this would in any shape and form be reasonable.

I'm guessing that at some point the defence would have brought up the point that these people were no more responsible for the video than any random guy from the street.

 

[Premonition]

Bollocks. They can't be charged for user uploaded material unless they do nothing to remove it once they are aware of it. (Well, they CAN be charged, as proven, but it's just so insanely dumb ... And pointless as well.)

 

[lumenadducere]

I'm with everyone else - this ruling makes no sense whatsoever. I'd be interested in whatever ridiculous excuse the judge/jury has for this decision.

 

[Del-Toro]

So the next step is to charge the Judge and Prosecutor for unlawful imprisonment... or maybe some conspiracy charge here?

And while they're at it, cut service to Italy to show them that Google isn't happy with the decision. That's what I would do.

 

[Lullabye]

Googlers? That's what their called? Huh, I did not know that. I just assumed that Google called them "employees".
theres really nothing to add to the main topic. Maybe Italy should stoop electing retarded judges.

 

[Quadtrix]

Don't you guys just love the world? I know I do...

 

[far_wanderer]

So, suing a company for something that goes up on a service they host is bad and all, but does anyone else notice the actual, far more serious, issue here? They didn't press charges against the company - they pressed charges against the employees. Employees who, if the Google blog is to be believed*, were not in any way connected to the video. Were they the people in charge of Google video, by some chance? Because that might actually make a small amount of sense. But if they are actually entirely unconnected to the video, then that's the worst example of burying the lead I've ever seen.

*The reason I question the blog is that it seems so unbelievable that these employees actually had no connection to the case beyond being random Google employees. They have to be connected to the case in some way, and not including that information puts my BS detector on high alert.

 

[MorteSphere]

Yet another folly of the technologically retarded.

 

[JWAN]

hmmm...we keep bankrupting our country and we need to get money somehow...LETS SUE A MAJOR GLOBAL CORPORATION!

FLAWLESS

 

[Obrien Xp]

Why didn't the judge just throw the case out of court for the stupidity of the charges?

 

[Eri]

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.177204-Italy-says-Google-responsible-for-content-posted

Just saying

 

[DarkRyter]

Google's lawyer must really suck.

 

[Mortons4ck]

Wouldn't be the first time the Italian legal system made a mockery of the law.

 

[Altorin]

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.177204-Italy-says-Google-responsible-for-content-posted

Just saying

while users are free to post news as they find it on the forums, saying the equivalent "Beat you to it" to the staff news posts is in really bad taste. On the Escapist, Staff News > all other news. Your tone isn't the worst I've seen so this is just a friendly note rather then a vitriolic hatespew, as you're new here.

It just doesn't fly