A Wrinkle in Take Down Requests
YouTube will take down video clips that have been posted to their site if they receive notice from a copyright holder that a video infringes the copyright and they want it taken down. This is, in part, because of requirements in the DMCA that must be met in order for YouTube (and other clip services, as well) to be protected from copyright infringement lawsuits. YouTube also takes down other videos for a variety of reasons.
A well written article in USA Today discusses the other side of the take down method of copyright protection.
Some folks are using the take down notification procedure inappropriately. Some notices are sent from people who have a personal beef with the video clip, but no actual copyright claim. YouTube has the discretion to remove such videos even in the absence of copyright problems.
Critics of the take down method cite these situations as problems, alleging a chilling effect on free speech by merely taking the word of one complainant when a legal anaysis would say that free speech - or some other right - would outweigh any potential copyright claim.
The truth is that any rule will have people who attempt to abuse or ignore it. I think YouTube has actually done a pretty good job of balancing the interests at stake. While they are quick to take down videos upon complaint, they have also been quite willing to restore the videos upon receiving contrary information. They appear to be actively involved in the process, assuring that while mistakes are bound to be made in an operation as huge as this one, there is a human touch able to apply common sense when necessary.
I don’t think the situation is as dire as some propose - although I certainly think that a close eye needs to be kept on Disney.
Leave a Reply