EU Court Rules That YouTube Wasn’t Liable for Illegal Music Uploads
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The top EU Court has ruled in YouTube‘s favor that the media giant cannot be held liable for illegal uploads of copyright protected music or videos under the European Union’s old rules.
The EU Court of Justice stated in their decision that, “Operators of online platforms in such cases aren’t the ones that communicate illegal content to the public, even if it was posted online illegally by their users”
The operator can only be held liable if it is aware of the illegal content posted on its platform “and refrains from expeditiously deleting it or blocking access to it.”
YouTube’s copyright strike program is an effective policing policy against such illegal content and while it may seem excessive to many users and creators, it protects them from such copyright infringement claims.
This decision by the EU court relates to a case which arose from a dispute in Germany in which a music producer sued YouTube over videos that were uploaded that contained excerpts from extracts from singer Sarah Brightman.
The videos consisted of private concert mixes in addition to music from her catalog of albums.
The producer sought an injunction and a decision that would hold YouTube accountable for compensating all rights holders accordingly.
However, the effects of the ruling are limited to the EU’s old copyright rules and precedes a revised law which took into effect earlier this month across the EU.
Kevin James has over 20 years of experience in the entertainment industry in various facets. He has worked as a recording artist, songwriter, producer, on-air radio personality, background actor and film director. Kevin is a Member of the National Writer's Union.