If you’ve ever tried searching for copyrighted material on Google, you might have noticed that some search results have been omitted and a message has been left in its place, informing you that the website has been removed from Google’s search results due to possible copyright infringement under the DMCA. Well interestingly it seems that Microsoft, in a bid to help remove illegal Microsoft products from Google’s search results, accidentally filed a DMCA takedown request from their own page!
Technically while it wasn’t Microsoft themselves who sent the request, it was done by a company known as LeakID, an organization that helps companies such as Microsoft monitor illegal link and sources. Thankfully for Microsoft, Google recognized the mistake and did not actually go through with the request, although we’re pretty sure they could have if they wanted to, just to mess with their competitors. In a statement released by a Microsoft spokesperson:
“We believe strongly in the effectiveness and the need for accuracy in the use of notice and takedown to address online infringement. To explain what happened here, Google’s online form requires identification of both the copyrighted content being infringed and the website address of the infringement. A vendor properly listed those six URLs as Microsoft copyrighted content that was being infringed, but then inadvertently copied and pasted those same six URLs in the field to identify the locations of infringement. This simple clerical error was identified and corrected right away, and we have taken steps to address the process to avoid it being repeated.”
Either way we expect Google employees to be taking the mickey out of Microsoft over the next couple of weeks.