YouTube Copyright Clearance
Put together by Dave Watterson
The music industry is coming to terms with how people want to use music on the internet. Arrangements for licensing have changed, organisations have merged or allowed others to act as their agents. YouTube (UK) has made agreements with UK trade bodies which ease the restrictions in return for a quarterly payment and the industry focus is on commercial and indie usage. The IAC Copyright Scheme remains in place but does not specifically relate to web use.
YouTube and Us
99 per cent of YouTube processing is totally automatic - it has to be. About 35 hours of video is uploaded to YouTube every single minute! Their 'Content ID' computer programs gradually check all uploads for music and video copyright violations. When they find a match they generate a message to the copyright holders and a warning to the video- maker. In Britain there seems to be four levels of YouTube response:
- No action may be taken.
- They add a pop-up advertisement to your video - a nuisance, but viewers can close it. That's not a bad compromise considering the free video hosting they provide.
- Sometimes they remove the soundtrack, which is much more annoying. They offer access to a bank of music which is cleared for use, but if your work contains dialogue and sound effects, that is of little use. If the video project is still in your editor, you could possibly remake the soundtrack using their music.
- Very occasionally they remove a video altogether.
So far as I can tell, notice of the possible copyright infringement is passed to the music company concerned and they choose whether to do nothing or insist on a change etc. That decision may be computer-generated or made by a human being.
Dealing with the Problem
No software is perfect and YouTube's Content ID programs can make mistakes, but usually they are right. If your music came from a royalty free CD or download from a supplier who allows internet use, the supplier is notified and will do nothing. If the music came from a normal commercial CD or download, the company concerned is notified and may, or may not, take action.
If the track came from a 'music library' of the sort usually only offered to film and TV producers, or to IAC members through the Music Advisory Scheme, the way the supplier responds depends on whether or not they identify you as a customer who has bought internet rights. Music supplied through the IAC Advisory Scheme is not automatically cleared for internet use.
I suggest that if your videos remain on view, do nothing. If they are muted or removed, tell YouTube that you have rights either through direct purchase from the music supplier concerned or through the IAC Licence Scheme. -YouTube will pass that claim on to the music company concerned. Most of them will respect that view and allow the video to remain. Some will not.
Wider Issues
The notes above refer only to YouTube in the UK, because in other countries music rights are owned by other companies. I know of no other video hosts with music industry agreements, but they all run checks and may remove videos which infringe copyright.
As responsible citizens, we want to obey the law, but it is not clear how to do so. That is unsatisfactory but it arises because copyright is a complex area with many fingers in the pie. Ultimately, those who own the rights can lay down whatever rules they want.
The safest ways to avoid trouble are:
- use royalty-free recordings which include internet rights
- compose your own music, perhaps with a suitable computer program
- negotiate fees with the bodies concerned. (That's expensive and is tricky because different companies own the rights in different parts of the world).
This article was prompted by a query from Geof Caudwell, who noted: "I have successfully removed blocks on my videos by mentioning the IAC licences, but does that really mean that I have complete clearance; or is it just someone (perhaps with little knowledge of copyright law) ticking a box, on seeing that I have some sort of official bit of paper?"
My personal view is that someone is demonstrating the general goodwill of the music industry towards us. There is no formal agreement between IAC and YouTube or any other video-hosting company. The YouTube (UK) deal serves all YouTube users in Britain ... including us.
And for the future?
The British music companies have established a new type of licensing for people like wedding videographers who want to sell small numbers of DVDs which include copyright music. Search for 'Limited Manufacture Licence' on www.prsformusic.com Maybe they will get round to a new type of licence for our sort of use.
Let me stress: I am not a lawyer or copyright expert - nor a spokesman for the IAC, this article is based on practical experience and some online research. Bear in mind that images may be copyright too and that copyright applies whether or not we intend to make money from our work.
Put together by Dave Watterson
The music industry is coming to terms with how people want to use music on the internet. Arrangements for licensing have changed, organisations have merged or allowed others to act as their agents. YouTube (UK) has made agreements with UK trade bodies which ease the restrictions in return for a quarterly payment and the industry focus is on commercial and indie usage. The IAC Copyright Scheme remains in place but does not specifically relate to web use.
YouTube and Us
99 per cent of YouTube processing is totally automatic - it has to be. About 35 hours of video is uploaded to YouTube every single minute! Their 'Content ID' computer programs gradually check all uploads for music and video copyright violations. When they find a match they generate a message to the copyright holders and a warning to the video- maker. In Britain there seems to be four levels of YouTube response:
- No action may be taken.
- They add a pop-up advertisement to your video - a nuisance, but viewers can close it. That's not a bad compromise considering the free video hosting they provide.
- Sometimes they remove the soundtrack, which is much more annoying. They offer access to a bank of music which is cleared for use, but if your work contains dialogue and sound effects, that is of little use. If the video project is still in your editor, you could possibly remake the soundtrack using their music.
- Very occasionally they remove a video altogether.
So far as I can tell, notice of the possible copyright infringement is passed to the music company concerned and they choose whether to do nothing or insist on a change etc. That decision may be computer-generated or made by a human being.
Dealing with the Problem
No software is perfect and YouTube's Content ID programs can make mistakes, but usually they are right. If your music came from a royalty free CD or download from a supplier who allows internet use, the supplier is notified and will do nothing. If the music came from a normal commercial CD or download, the company concerned is notified and may, or may not, take action.
If the track came from a 'music library' of the sort usually only offered to film and TV producers, or to IAC members through the Music Advisory Scheme, the way the supplier responds depends on whether or not they identify you as a customer who has bought internet rights. Music supplied through the IAC Advisory Scheme is not automatically cleared for internet use.
I suggest that if your videos remain on view, do nothing. If they are muted or removed, tell YouTube that you have rights either through direct purchase from the music supplier concerned or through the IAC Licence Scheme. -YouTube will pass that claim on to the music company concerned. Most of them will respect that view and allow the video to remain. Some will not.
Wider Issues
The notes above refer only to YouTube in the UK, because in other countries music rights are owned by other companies. I know of no other video hosts with music industry agreements, but they all run checks and may remove videos which infringe copyright.
As responsible citizens, we want to obey the law, but it is not clear how to do so. That is unsatisfactory but it arises because copyright is a complex area with many fingers in the pie. Ultimately, those who own the rights can lay down whatever rules they want.
The safest ways to avoid trouble are:
- use royalty-free recordings which include internet rights
- compose your own music, perhaps with a suitable computer program
- negotiate fees with the bodies concerned. (That's expensive and is tricky because different companies own the rights in different parts of the world).
This article was prompted by a query from Geof Caudwell, who noted: "I have successfully removed blocks on my videos by mentioning the IAC licences, but does that really mean that I have complete clearance; or is it just someone (perhaps with little knowledge of copyright law) ticking a box, on seeing that I have some sort of official bit of paper?"
My personal view is that someone is demonstrating the general goodwill of the music industry towards us. There is no formal agreement between IAC and YouTube or any other video-hosting company. The YouTube (UK) deal serves all YouTube users in Britain ... including us.
And for the future?
The British music companies have established a new type of licensing for people like wedding videographers who want to sell small numbers of DVDs which include copyright music. Search for 'Limited Manufacture Licence' on www.prsformusic.com Maybe they will get round to a new type of licence for our sort of use.
Let me stress: I am not a lawyer or copyright expert - nor a spokesman for the IAC, this article is based on practical experience and some online research. Bear in mind that images may be copyright too and that copyright applies whether or not we intend to make money from our work.
