Mediaset sues Google's YouTube

MILAN, ITALY: Italian publisher Mediaset said on Wednesday it had filed suit against Internet search company Google Inc. and its unit YouTube for illegal use of its materials.

Mediaset, controlled by the family of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, said in a statement it was seeking "at least 500 million euros ($779.3 million)" in damages in the suit, filed in a Rome court.

The statement said that after a sample analysis it found at June 10 on YouTube "at least 4,643 videos and clips owned by us, equivalent to more than 325 hours of transmission without having rights".

Mediaset said this was equal to the loss of 315,672 days of broadcasting by its three TV channels.