Bot-A-Fett

Project Case Statement: This project focuses on Copyright laws regarding videos on Youtube in order to better conceptualize protection of intellectual property.

Project Problem Statement: Companies have a right to their own material. How can Youtube improve their methodology in which they employ to regulate copyright infringement?

Experiment Statement: Collect information on how copyrighted material is managed on youtube, particularly in regards to their notorious copyright bot, and compare it to other similar cases. Come up with a solution that improves youtube’s management of copyrighted material.

Project Information

What is the Bot:  (and why it is automatically the worst option for flagging material)

The Bot is a computing system that automatically processes all videos of all kinds as they are uploaded and compares them to copyrighted materials. A single bot uses multiple algorithms to process all kinds of information uploaded. The algorithms used, are, well, algorithms and are thus incapable of interpreting fair use law as these deal with problems of perception.

The Four Fair Uses: (broken down for a better understanding)

1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of Commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes

Courts typically focus on whether the use is “transformative.” That is, whether it adds new expression or meaning to the original, or whether it merely copies from the original.

2. The nature of the copyrighted work

Using material from primarily factual works is more likely to be fair than using purely fictional works.

3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole

Borrowing small bits of material from an original work is more likely to be considered fair use than borrowing large portions. However, even a small taking may weigh against fair use in some situations if it constitutes the “heart” of the work.

4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work

Uses that harm the copyright owner’s ability to profit from his or her original work are less likely to be fair uses. Courts have sometimes made an exception under this factor in cases involving parodies.

How the Bot works: (and why this is an issue)

The bot flags the video as containing copyrighted material, and the video is either taken down or, if the video has ads, the monetization goes to whomever the bot has in its database as the owner of the copyright. The owner of the copyright doesn’t approve or deny the claim; the bot automatically flags the video. In the event that the up-loader contests the claim and loses the case, then their account gains a strike, and when an account gains three strikes, they (and all of their videos) are removed from Youtube.

What happens when your account gets 3 strikes:  (and the unfair battle)

After your channel has 3 strikes, it is suspended, and you are forbidden from making a new account while your channel is suspended. While the bot can claim as many videos as it finds instantaneously, you can only appeal up to 3 at a time, meaning if the bot incorrectly flags a whole series of videos, it could take more than a month to get the matter sorted out.

Steps for appealing a claim: (and links to what you’ll encounter)

Step 1: Acknowledge 3rd party content or dispute http://gyazo.com/8583522977268924e43ddd5b87ec72a0

Step 2: Choose the grounds on which you will defend your video

http://gyazo.com/54356114293c3af772900c1606f164af

(note that the first 3 options in the above link admits that copyright infringing has occurred and you acknowledge that your video has 3rd party content, which is understandable, given the explanation of the grounds, but is unnecessary to have in that list…)

Step 3: Familiarize yourself with the grounds you chose and accept again

http://gyazo.com/2f365adc706a7399c72c9a73f6080227

Step 4: The claimant (owner of the copyright) is then notified for the first time about your video violating copyright laws, and can either send a legal DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) Takedown, and have the video removed, or will release the claim on your video. If they issue the takedown, your channel will be given a strike.

The Bot Break Down: Conclusion

The “Bot-A-Fett” Problem:

The Bot is incapable of considering fair use law, which is then left up to the individual to dispute. This is problematic because the majority of the population is incapable of navigating the legal channels, which compose the idea of fair use. The company that owns the copyright initially decides upon disputes. This often times takes a considerable amount of time and can result in loss of revenue.  

The Solution:

The bot’s current methods are very antagonistic and do not seem to take the companies’ wishes into account. Rather than simply taking down a video if the bot allegedly finds something copyrighted in it, the bot should send a report to the owner of the IP, and it would then be the IP owner’s choice whether or not to take action. Working in the fair use information from before, the bot could also provide a rating (1-10) of severity, based on how much of the copyrighted material is being used. By implementing these systems, Youtube’s copyright management would become a lot more fair, and the risk of having your video taken down and being unable to bring it back without risking your account would be much less.

Project Link:

http://prezi.com/otnfpxzidzed/bot-a-fett/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=...