Radiohead Video Taken Down

If you've recently tried viewing the video of Radiohead from the Grammys, you've likely noticed that it has been removed from YouTube "due to a copyright claim by Grammys." The video's removal is emblematic of the struggle that content owners have been having for years in their efforts to figure out how to make money on the internet. Clearly, the internet provides both great opportunities and great challenges for owners of digital content, as the potential to reach a huge audience is counterbalanced by the ease with which such media can be copied and distributed online.

Owners of digital content typically make money either by charging users to buy/view/listen to videos or songs in their catalog, or by offering these items for free and exposing users to ads paid for by third parties. It's not surprising that CBS/The Grammy Foundation doesn't want footage that they "own"--such as that of Radiohead's performance at the Grammys--to show up on YouTube, because they don't benefit when people like you and me view the video there.

A lot of media companies, however, are getting smart about identifying when and where their content is being distributed without authorization, and in many cases the end result is that the content in question remains up on a site like YouTube, but with authorized versions, complete with ads, appearing instead. The good thing about all of this is that a video authorized by, say, CBS is likely to be of higher quality than one uploaded by an average YouTube user.

So, when I noticed that the Radiohead video had been removed, I figured at the very least I'd be able to find a high-quality version on CBS's website. Apparently not. A few Grammy performance recordings are being offered for purchase on iTunes, but not Radiohead.

Now this doesn't make sense to me. I understand content owners wanting to make money, and I'm more than willing to pay for content that I like. But nobody benefits when a video is completely removed from the internet. That's just a waste.