Google isn’t happy with YouTube conversion websites and the company has begun threatening lawsuits against those web properties. If you’re unfamiliar with YouTube to MP3 conversion websites they allow users to input a YouTube Url and in exchange receive a downloadable MP3. The services are great for capturing concert footage or rare music you can’t find on other websites.
The first victim of Google’s most recent attack effort is YouTube-mp3.org , a website that receives upwards of 1.3 million visitors per day. According to Google the company’s willingness to allow for illegal downloads of often copyrighted material is not acceptable and must be stopped.
Google is giving the owners of the conversion website 7 days to act before suing the company.
Google in the meantime has cut off API rights which allow web applications the ability to interact with YouTube.
Under YouTube’s Terms of Service (ToS) developers are not allowed to make content downloadable in any form.
According to YouTube associate product council Harris Cohen the website’s functionality violets YouTube ToS by allowing users to:
“Separate, isolate, or modify the audio or video components of any YouTube audiovisual content made available through the YouTube API.”
In fighting back against Google YouTube-mp3.org founder “Philip” said in a public plea:
“We would estimate that there are roughly 200 million people across the world that make use of services like ours and Google doesn’t just ignore all those people, they are about to criminalize them. With the way they are interpreting and creating their ToS every one of those 200 million users is threatened to be sued by Google.”
Philip says Google in the meantime violates its own ToS by not following its own “Don’t Be Evil” company mantra.
