As the New York Post reports, Universal Music is rattling legal sabres at YouTube. Here’s another article from Playfuls.com about all this indicating it’s about a lot more than just YouTube.

This was certainly inevitable, and will be interesting to watch. Will a copyright suit against YouTube create an anti-Universal backlash among YouTube users?

Companies like Universal really need to think through their relationship with the online world. If someone gets a copy of a CD from a friend and makes MP3s of that CD available online for free or sells them for profit, then sure, that’s a clear case of copyright violation and they ought to get nailed.

But does a YouTube video like this of some kid lip-synching to a song that gets viewed 350,000 times take money out of someone’s pocket or serve as free advertising for that song to those 350,000?

Comedy Central really gets the online world, and programs like The Daily Show and The Colbert Report understand how to interact and welcome the online audience as opposed to antagonizing and shutting them out. Smart companies, I believe, will follow their example.

Takeaway for marketers: Place customers first and serve their wants and needs, you have a chance for a win-win. Place your company above your customers, it’s almost a guaranteed lose-lose.

This entry was posted on Monday, September 18th, 2006 at 6:00 am and is filed under Internet Stuff, Marketing Stuff, Marketing Takeaways, Social Media.