The real surprise here is how much idealism YouTube has inspired in people, people who convinced themselves that ripping off a script to a major Hollywood film and releasing a different version onto the Internet was somehow a legitimate venture, and that YouTube would stand up for the right to do it. They did not. It doesn't mean that they sold out or "went corporate" (all of this happened before Google was interested). It simply means they followed the law.

Moukarbel told MarketWatch in an interview that YouTube's actions signaled to him the end of an era for the video site.

"I was happy to utilize YouTube when it was still not clearly established. It felt a bit utopian, even though the days for that were clearly numbered," Moukarbel said.