Evaluate YouTube’s Copyright Policies, Essay Example

Copyright Policies on Social Media Platforms: YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter

The copyright world is straightforward when it comes to publications such as books, plays, and works from the theatre. The age of social media has brought complexities into copyright policies. Copyright policies protect creations of the mind from unauthorized use. There is controversy about what can and cannot be copyrighted in the social media space, and the dynamism of social media makes copyrighting of works difficult. For instance, a website cannot be copyrighted, but the content that is posted on the website, or instance, web content, blog posts, photographs, short online articles, etc. can be copyrighted.

YouTube also operates under the US Fair Use law, which negates the need for content creators to seek the permission of copyright holders for each third-party content they use on their sites. Works that are covered under the Fair Use law include criticisms, research material, news reports, and every piece of commentary. YouTube has also created an Audio Library, which contains all sounds and music tracks for which permission from original creators doesn’t have to be sought.

There are several copyright policies that YouTube has put in place to make sure that copyright rules protect original uploads. First, Google generally uses a Content ID claim. In a Content ID claim, owners of content, such as labels, artists, movie producers, TV shows, can lodge Content ID claim if a creator has used their content without permission. Using Content ID, creators can block other users from using their material when a claim is made. Alternatively, if the third-party is using the unauthorized content to generate revenue, then the original user can allow the content to remain on the other content to stay live on YouTube. Still, the revenue generated from the ads running on the site will accrue to the original owners.

YouTube also allows Copyright takedowns, which enables content creators to manage their copyright interests. Copyright takedowns allow creators to file a complaint requiring infringing copyright content. A copyright takedown will be accompanied by a copyright strike, where the content is taken down, and the strike notice lasts for 90 days, pending an appeal. In a copyright takedown, the owner whose copyright has been infringed submits a formal notice with the legal requirements all filled out. Victim sites of copyright takedowns have options to retract takedowns or submit a counter-notification (British Library, 2020).

The other copyright policy that YouTube allows is Creative Commons. The Creative Common license gives a content originator the freedom to give other YouTube channels the ability to use their work. These kinds of videos are usually marked by a CC badge, which grants permission for the content to be used on other sites even for purposes of commercial exploitation. However, only YouTube accounts with good reputations reserve the right to reuse such videos.

Other social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter also have fewer copyright policies on YouTube. However, it is challenging with these two sites because what constitutes as third-party content is not immediately discernible. Since Facebook and Twitter are websites, they do not own the copyright to the content that users post on there. However, a caveat found in the Terms and Conditions gives the site the control over the content on the site, once it is posted. The site, therefore, has the permission to manipulate the content; however, they wish without necessarily paying for it.

For Twitter, the responsibility of protecting the copyright of works and content posted on Twitter rests with the content owner. However, Twitter reserves the right to take down any content which is deemed to violate the User Agreement. Twitter has given control to users to file complaints if they judge that their content copyright has been infringed.

Facebook’s terms are similar to Twitter in that they give the content originator all the rights to the content they create on the site. Facebook gives the creator the freedom to share their content with anyone within the sites and any other third parties, provided that the content does not violate Facebook Terms of Service.

Understanding the copyright policies of a social media page can save a content creator a lot of headaches and potential lawsuits. In Facebook and Twitter, the copyright policies are not as severe as, for instance, on YouTube or other video platforms, which have more elaborate copyright policies.

If I were to change copyright policies for any social media or YouTube, I would change two YouTube copyright laws. First, when a copyright takedown favors the original owners in disputes, and this is unfair to defendants. I would therefore put in place a 14-day period in which the defendant is given time to file a counter-notification before a strike down is implemented.

Secondly, I would revise the provision for Content ID claims to receive the revenue from the ads on the video containing the copyrighted infringing material. This is because sometimes, the infringing material is an insignificant part of the video. Yet, when a Content ID claim goes through, the revenue which would be accruing to the content creator goes to the label or the owners of the violating video.

References

An Introduction to YouTube Copyright. British Library.com. Retrieved August 30, 2020.

Murray, J (July 23, 2020). How Copyright Works with Social Media. The small balance business.com. Retrieved August 30, 2020.