Google won't want to kill the golden goose. I suspect they're just tinkering with ways to overcome the copyright issue whilst still making money.
Exactly. Besides, too many users of the internet are plain dumb in their expectations that they are entitled to free this, free that and free everything. There are a lot of website owners and advertisers footing a big part of the cost to fund what is on the internet. So if a company can make an extra buck, and if a few free-loaders eventually have to pitch in some revenue, its fine by me.