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Zahavah Levine

12/05/24

@ Sequoia Capital

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) provided a potential safe harbor for YouTube, allowing us to build a business model that could benefit creators and copyright holders alike.

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How YouTube Was Created ft. Founder Steve Chen

@ Sequoia Capital

How YouTube Was Created ft. Founder Steve Chen

12/05/24

Related Takeaways

Sequoia Capital Cast

12/05/24

@ Sequoia Capital

The ruling in 2010 that YouTube was eligible for DMCA Safe Harbor protected it from copyright liability, marking a significant legal victory for the platform.

Sequoia Capital Cast

12/05/24

@ Sequoia Capital

YouTube's Content ID system, developed with Google's resources, became crucial for managing copyright issues and ensuring the platform's survival and growth.

Zahavah Levine

12/05/24

@ Sequoia Capital

As YouTube began generating advertising revenue, we faced legal challenges regarding copyright issues related to user-generated content.

Sequoia Capital Cast

12/05/24

@ Sequoia Capital

The realization that YouTube's survival depended on selling to a company with more resources to handle legal challenges became clear after facing inevitable litigation from rights holders.

Neal Mohan

10/31/23

@ Stanford Graduate School of Business

YouTube's business model is based on advertising, which allows us to keep the platform free and accessible, empowering users to learn and create.

Neal Mohan

05/24/25

@ Nikhil Kamath

YouTube has invested heavily in Digital Rights Management (DRM) tools to combat piracy, but it remains challenging to prevent screen grabbing and unauthorized distribution.

Zahavah Levine

12/05/24

@ Sequoia Capital

I joined YouTube as its first lawyer, tasked with navigating the legal landscape to ensure we could monetize user-generated videos without facing liability for copyright infringement.

Sequoia Capital Cast

12/05/24

@ Sequoia Capital

The decision to pursue an acquisition with Google was driven by the need for legal support, as YouTube was too small to effectively manage the impending copyright battles alone.

Zahavah Levine

12/05/24

@ Sequoia Capital

Despite our belief in the DMCA's protections, the entertainment industry, particularly Hollywood, did not agree, leading to numerous copyright takedown notices and legal challenges.