Google wants to kill your bedroom cover-versions, applies to patent melody matching for YouTube

YouTube has become a treasure trove for rare live editions, outtakes and covers of popular songs -- the latter making stars out of acts like Pomplamoose. However, Google and the recording industry don't feel the same way, but the site's famous system can only handle exact matches of recorded songs -- so that 14-year-old moppet's cover version of Born this Way remains unfiltered. That's why the company applied to patent a Melody Identification DRM system that'll pluck out the tune from any uploaded file, and, depending on the publisher's whim, monetize (slap adverts over it) or shut it down for good. The patents haven't been granted and nowhere in the text of either document does it reveal how the company plans to deal with songs that sound very, very similar, but we can't imagine what'll be left on the site if it's granted -- lots of mute cat videos, probably.

Google wants to kill your bedroom cover-versions, applies to patent melody matching for YouTube originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 May 2012 13:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.