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I've been sat with a youtube copyright counter-notification form open and written for a long time. I'm probably never going to press Submit.
A company has asked for a video of mine (Do It Right) to be taken down because of footage use. I believe that my non-profit, transformative work that uses very small amounts of material in a way that does not compete with the original work is in fact a fair use. The fact that the message of the video is not political is about the only thing that doesn't tick every fair use box.
Problem is, fair use is a defence. By submitting a counter-claim I have to be prepared to go to court over this should the copyright owner wish to contest my counter claim. I am not prepared to do this. I do not have the resources, as much as I feel my claim is valid, to fight such a thing in court. Which court this would be, given where I am and where they are, I am not really sure, but this would seemingly be in the US.
So, I haven't filed a counter-notification despite my understanding that I am in the right. Of course, the way youtube is run means that all it takes is two more similar claims by copyright holders, claims that I cannot defend because I could not afford the legal representation to do so despite being sure of my rights, for me to have my entire account banned, black-marked and removed. I know this is true of many out there but I don't find this acceptable, particularly when others who have uploaded the video I have made to youtube continue to share my work without attribution and without such a copyright claim. Mine was found first, is all.
That youtube enforces the law, I have no problem with. That big companies have the protection of the cost of legal defense I have issues with but am willing to regrettably accept. I am willing for this content to be removed from youtube because of my unwillingness to commit to a court battle on content (even though the likelihood is that they will not respond to my counter-notification in a timely manner and I will win by default).
My objection is the rock and a hard place put by youtube's policies which either force me to sit and wait for further indefensible claims on my account and eventually face a ban or to gamble with a much more costly legal situation just to protect my right to remix and to share that content with others.
The whole thing stinks, really. What would others do, in my situation?
A company has asked for a video of mine (Do It Right) to be taken down because of footage use. I believe that my non-profit, transformative work that uses very small amounts of material in a way that does not compete with the original work is in fact a fair use. The fact that the message of the video is not political is about the only thing that doesn't tick every fair use box.
Problem is, fair use is a defence. By submitting a counter-claim I have to be prepared to go to court over this should the copyright owner wish to contest my counter claim. I am not prepared to do this. I do not have the resources, as much as I feel my claim is valid, to fight such a thing in court. Which court this would be, given where I am and where they are, I am not really sure, but this would seemingly be in the US.
So, I haven't filed a counter-notification despite my understanding that I am in the right. Of course, the way youtube is run means that all it takes is two more similar claims by copyright holders, claims that I cannot defend because I could not afford the legal representation to do so despite being sure of my rights, for me to have my entire account banned, black-marked and removed. I know this is true of many out there but I don't find this acceptable, particularly when others who have uploaded the video I have made to youtube continue to share my work without attribution and without such a copyright claim. Mine was found first, is all.
That youtube enforces the law, I have no problem with. That big companies have the protection of the cost of legal defense I have issues with but am willing to regrettably accept. I am willing for this content to be removed from youtube because of my unwillingness to commit to a court battle on content (even though the likelihood is that they will not respond to my counter-notification in a timely manner and I will win by default).
My objection is the rock and a hard place put by youtube's policies which either force me to sit and wait for further indefensible claims on my account and eventually face a ban or to gamble with a much more costly legal situation just to protect my right to remix and to share that content with others.
The whole thing stinks, really. What would others do, in my situation?
