An Attorney General caught up in the middle of the MPAA’s plans to attack Google is now backpeddling, after Google sued him for conspiring with the movie industry. Although, the recent exposure of communications between Jim Hood and the MPAA for everyone to see may also have something to do with it.
Hood agreed to take a break from the battle in which he’s been trying to take Google to task for years. However, given the recent evidence, and a new lawsuit against him, he has rediscovered his love of reconciliation and wants to put a pin in it.
“In an attempt to resolve some of the problems the states’ chief law enforcement officers have raised, I am calling a time out, so that cooler heads may prevail,” Hood said in a statement.
It’s a long term battle that Google has been engaged in with Mr Hood. But when the Sony hacks exposed communications among the Motion Picture Association of America planning to turn the heat up on an organisation called ‘Goliath’, it was fairly obvious Google was the target, and Google likely took notice.
Although Hood’s attacks on Google have more broadly involved drugs and pornography, the MPAA’s beef lies in the ease with which search engines can be used to find pirated material. After the defeat of SOPA, its new tactic was three-pronged: Support the discrediting of Google in the media, set aside funds for digging up legal evidence against Google, and attack it head on in the courts.
The documents claim a handful of Attorneys General were keen to work with the MPAA after being told where to go when dealing with Google. We speculated before on what would happen if Google decided to fight back, as it’s more than just a case of deep pockets. Shots haven’t been fired against the MPAA yet, but we’re keen to see if this ‘time out’ is actually a ‘time over’.
[NY Times]