KatsBits Community

General Category => Blog => Topic started by: kat on January 28, 2023, 05:08:44 PM

Title: Unsolicited Complaints of Copyright
Post by: kat on January 28, 2023, 05:08:44 PM
Unsolicited Complaints of Copyright

Upon receipt of unsolicited email from unrecognised parties (THEM) claiming to be notifying the recipient (YOU) of "illegal" content on their (YOUR) YouTube, Twitch, TikTok etc., the response must always be a simple and business-like, words to the effect of;

Thank you for bringing this to our attention.
To ensure this matter is dealt with correctly, please submit details to [Service Provider] using their [copyright/complaints form/process].

DO NOT, EVER;

In other words, if an emailed complaint references 'illegal music' in a video uploaded to YouTube, the recipient (YOU) should direct the claimant (THEM) to use YouTubes Report feature to flag a specific video or videos, or to their Copyright Complaint Form (https://www.youtube.com/copyright_complaint_form) [2] where they can submit details of a claim.

There are a number of reasons for doing this;

If the claim, and Claimant, is legitimate, they will take the time to submit a complaint through official channels. If not, they'll likely not respond again.

Finally, it does not go without saying, Copyright Complaints initiate a legal process Content Creators need to stay on the right side of no matter how put-out they may feel, so make sure to dot the i's and cross the t's to maintain standing against spurious, vexatious and vacuous complaints [4].


Footnotes:

[1] NEVER respond to claims by sending any other than a redirection or counter notice. NEVER send files or other material as these can be used to prove the Claimant the originator.

[2] For more information on YouTube's Copyright claimant process see here https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/2807622

[3] Do not underestimate the importance of using the tools Service Providers make available for complaints as they do not necessarily like matters being taken out of their hands when it concerns their services, to the extent that they may then penalise Users arbitrarily, retoractively justified as Terms of Service or Community Guideline abuse.

[4] This is especially important now that copyright complaints have been weaponised, used as a tool to remove disagreeable content from the Internet. Being sure to maintain the integrity of the process increases the chances of false, erroneous and malicious complaints being quickly recognised for what they are and dealt with as such.