In late June, Google announced that it had won its long legal battle with Viacom. The court decided that YouTube is protected by the safe harbor of  the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) against claims of copyright infringement.

"We’re extremely gratified by this decision and the now established judicial consensus that online services like YouTube are immune from liability when they work cooperatively with copyright holders to help them protect their rights online," said Google Vice President & General Counsel Kent Walker.

He went on to call it an important victory not just for Google, but for billions of people around the world who use the web to communicate and share experiences with each other. That victory isn’t quite sealed just yet though.

Viacom has filed for appeal. The company said from the beginning that it would do so, but now the filing is in and the battle wages on. Peter Kafka at MediaMemo has the document:

The battle between YouTube and Viacom has been going on for over three years. More on its history can be found here.

Other companies like Disney, NBC, and Warner Brothers have sided with Viacom in the past.