YouTube has confirmed that it plans to test a system that identifies content uploaded without the permission of the relevant copyright holder.

The Google-owned video sharing site is rolling out the technology in an effort to co-operate with content owners such as Disney and Time Warner who have raised concerns about copyrighted content being distributed freely.

Content from those two companies will be the first to be identified by the new system which uses fingerprinting tools to identify specific attributes - such as an ABC logo in the corner of a TV show - that could indicate the unauthorised posting of copyrighted content.

The technology is expected to become available for testing purposes next month before a wider rollout later in the year.