YouTube May Show 'Innocence of Muslims' Film: U.S. Court

A U.S. appeals court ruled on Monday that Google Inc should not have to remove an anti-Islamic film from its YouTube website because a woman complained that she was duped into performing in the film that depicted the Prophet Mohammed as a pedophile. In a case widely followed for its potential impact on the entertainment industry, an 11-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said an injunction prohibiting Google from broadcasting the film should be lifted. A three-judge panel had ordered Google to remove the controversial film "Innocence of Muslims." Billed as a trailer, it triggered anti-American sentiment among Muslims in Egypt, Libya and elsewhere in 2012. The case raised questions about whether actors may, in certain circumstances, have an independent copyright on their individual performances. The 9th Circuit said Garcia's argument "would enable any contributor from a costume designer to an extra to claim copyright in random bits and pieces" of a movie.