SEOUL – Viacom exec chairman Sumner Redstone said that he "would not object" to Tom Cruise returning for a fourth "Mission: Impossible" outing. But he used much stronger language Tuesday concerning copyright protection in the digital age.

          Speaking at the Seoul Digital Forum, in the South Korean capital, Redstone said Viacom and Paramount would not tolerate copyright theft by video sites such as Google's YouTube.

"From Times Square to Kwang Hwa Moon Square (in South Korea), the threats to copyright are grave, and they are growing," Redstone said. "Copyright is even more right in the digital age."

Having famously fallen out with the box office idol and kicked Cruise/Wagner company off the Paramount lot over Tom Cruise's "recent conduct" in 2006, Redstone Tuesday cleared the way for a Cruise comeback. But he said that the decision would be a creative one taken by studio chief Brad Grey. "That's up to Brad Gray, who runs Paramount," Redstone said. "He will make the decision." The rest of his speech was grittier and focused on the threats and opportunities thrown up by the digital age.

"It's harder and harder to make money in the media business," Redstone said, pointing to websites enabling downloading of full length songs and movies, DVD piracy and the unauthorized Internet distribution of copyright content. "We cannot tolerate any form of piracy by anyone, including YouTube."

"When you can instantly and easily download a high-quality feature-length film for free -- with no repercussions -- the incentive to purchase it quickly evaporates," he said. "You can imagine just how devastating it is to learn that your new blockbuster release has hit the streets before it opens."

          Redstone said that Asian markets are huge and increasingly interested in intellectual property regulation. He said that Bollywood had had success in lobbying the Indian government and that China is stepping up controls in order to protect content it will produce for the Beijing Olympics.

"I am increasingly preaching to the converted in piracy-prone markets around the world," Redstone said. "Governments in China and India are starting to take an active interest in enforcing copyright, if only to protect their own homegrown content," he said.

"Korea will, no doubt, follow suit given the quantity and quality of local content that is at risk," he said.

Redstone said that Viacom is seeking deals with South Korean companies, and that its plans to boost investment in the South Korean animation industry, which is responsible for delivering "The Simpsons."

"Korea is the third largest cable and satellite ad market in Asia. Currently MTV and Nickelodeon are here in Korea, but on a far more limited basis than we would like," he said. "We are forging partnerships with local media leaders such as Nexon and Daum in the gaming and digital areas."

He said that Viacom's MTV Networks last week agreed to supply digital content to NHN Corp., Korea's largest Internet firm by revenue.

He urged government authorities and "aggregators" including Internet Service Providers, device manufacturers, hosting companies and site operators to join efforts to fight piracy.

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