Comics Unlimited News and Info

You may recall that I sent out links to my videos on YouTube where I talked about the situation where the media giant, VIACOM, had YouTube removed over 100,000 videos claiming that the videos infringed on copyrights the corporation owned. You may also recall that I fought the removal of my video, which was caught up in the sweep. My video was a parody of reality television and did not infringe on any copyrights. I wrote to Viacom, YouTube, and even the Associated Press, protesting the action by Viacom and YouTube. I was contacted days later by MTV's legal department (MTV is one of Viacom's many cable networks), and they had reviewed my video and found that it was taken down in error. The video was put back up, and the strike I had received against my YouTube account was removed. Well, I was contacted by Catherine Holahan of "Business Week" for an interview for an article for their website. I granted the interview and it was put up today. Here is the link to that inter

Okay, just for fun I am holding an informal gathering of people from YouTube at my shop, COMICS UNLIMITED, on saturday, March 24, 2007. I don't really know if anyone would actually respond and come to Evansville unless they were already from the area (and probably not even then), but I figure "What the hey?" MATT HAWES'S INFORMAL YOUTUBE GATHERING ! When: Saturday, March 24, 2007 from 12 noon to 7 o'clock P.M. Where: COMICS UNLIMITED 654-B Diamond Avenue Evansville, Indiana 47711 www.ComicsUnlimited.biz So, if you are from YouTube (and even if you aren't), stop on in and say "hi!" And, if you want to peruse the shop and buy from me, I won't complain! :-) Matthew Hawes

Hi gang! Whew! Battling a multi-billion-dollar evil, greedy, corporate media giant can be tiring! Last Friday, February 2, 2007, I received an e-mail from YouTube alerting me that one of my videos, a video that was a parody of reality television, was taken down from the site because Viacom International (the really big media giant that owns several cable networks, CBS, and Paramount) claimed that my video infringed on its' copyright (MTV's "The Real World"). First, it is a parody. Second, there was nothing in the video that infringed on any copyright from Viacom! Well, I e-mailed and wrote letters to Viacom, YouTube, and even the Associated Press complaining about this when I learned that Viacom was taking down over one-hundred thousand videos claiming copyright infringement. Apparently, Viacom couldn't work out a deal with YouTube over users uploading clips from shows like "South Park" (Yep, Viacom owns Comedy Central, too), and so demanded that YouTube

Hi gang! REAAAAALLLLY Interesting news on the VIACOM vs. "THE HAPPY SHOW!" front! Check out my video for the scoop!: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ933KXvKDs Thank you to all my friends who were so supportive and had such kind and encouraging words for me! It is greatly appreciated! You guys rock! Matthew Hawes COMICS UNLIMITED "THE HAPPY SHOW!" www.TheHappyShow.net

Hi friends! My battle against the unfair removal of my parody video by YouTube under pressure and at the request of Viacom has made news on one website from L.A. already: http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlLA/tangled_web/ Check it out! Thanks to everyone for the great support and encouragement! I really appreciate it! Matthew Hawes http://www.thehappyshow.net/

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16945395/ Basically, because Viacom and YouTube couldn't reach an agreement acceptable to Viacom, it forced YouTube to remove over one hundred thousand videos that it claimed were infringing on their copyrights. One of my videos, a blatant parody, an obvious spoof of reality televison named "The Real Happy Life World" was taken off the site, and I was sent a message from YouTube alerting me to this and informing me that Viacom is (wrongly) stating it infringes on their copyright. Viacom is the parent company that owns the MTV cable television network, which produced a program entitled "The Real World." Now, apparently, the mock logo and/or the use of the words "Real" and "World" were enough that Viacom and YouTube took down my video yesterday. I have written both e-mails and "snail-mail" letters to Viacom, YouTube, and the Associated Press, so far, challenging this action. The message I receiced from YouT