YouTube Teaches Copyright Course

In an effort to crack down on copyright infringement offenses and claims on YouTube, Google, the owner of YouTube, has decided to offer a crash course on the subject.  This isn’t just any boring course however.  This course comes in the form of an entertaining cartoon.  Although full of copyright law and information, this video has all the comedy to hold the attention of even the most rambunctious toddler.

When discussing a rather lackluster topic like copyright law, YouTube had to find a way to spice it up.  The video features the characters from the Happy Tree Friends series and is entitled “YouTube Copyright School.”  In its own simplified way, the video goes over some of the mistakes that people make when it comes to posting unoriginal content on YouTube.  YouTube has gotten fed up with the amount of copyright infringement that takes place on their site and wants to educate users on the legal guidelines.  YouTube is also trying to warn users about the risks of copyright infringement, both on their site and in the legal system.

While I watched the video for the sheer amusement, many YouTube users will have no choice.  On Thursday, users that are slapped with a copyright notification will be required to watch the video and take a quiz based on what they learned from it.  The video explores the most common ways that people use content in an inappropriate way.  This includes uploading another person’s content without permission regardless of how the content was gathered.  The video even goes into what constitutes a fair use.  The video indicated that users with multiple strikes risked being removed from YouTube and even prosecuted or sued.  The main focus of the video was to break down YouTube’s guidelines on copyright laws so that users could understand what they can and can’t do.  Users will now be held more accountable for their actions.

Google wants to protect copyright holders and their users.  The video explains what the rights of a copyright holder are and what they can do to prevent others from distributing their work without permission.  If a copyright holder wants, they can send a complaint notification to YouTube about the work that is being unlawfully displayed.  The user that posted the video has an opportunity to contest the claim but if found to be in violation of the guidelines, they could face serious punishment.

I applaud YouTube and Google for taking the steps to create an innovative way of informing their users.  Sometimes there are users that just aren’t aware of what is considered right and wrong when it comes to posting videos.  There are those users that need a simplified crash course.  In truth, Google is just trying to protect itself from a potential legal battle.  By making users more accountable in a documented way, they can insulate themselves more easily from financial responsibility.  Using a cartoon video was an ingenious method of making light of what is a rather serious problem.

April 14, 2011