Viacom claims in a New York federal court appeal that YouTube allows and even welcomes "rampant copyright infringement.''
A lower court previously concluded that Google Inc.'s popular video service is protected from copyright infringement claims. On Tuesday, Viacom Inc. urged a Manhattan appeals panel to reject that
ruling.
The New York-based Viacom owns popular cable channels such as MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. Google is based in Mountain View.
Viacom lawyer Paul Smith says YouTube gets a free ride on the backs of other's copyrights.
Google attorney Andrew Shapiro counters that YouTube follows the law.
He says that when YouTube is told of a copyright infringement, it always takes down the video.
It could take months for the appeals panel to rule.
