How to Respond to a YouTube Copyright Claim: Best Practices

YouTube Copyright Claims and How to Deal with a Strike?

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

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YouTube copyright rules might not always seem fair, but they are in place for a reason. If your YouTube videos get flagged for copyright issues relating to the background music or film clips it can be frustrating, especially if you receive a copyright notice for using royalty-free music you have a license for. Rather than feeling as though your creativity is being restrained, read this article to better understand the reasons copyright issues come up and what can be done to resolve them. Disputing copyright claims is something that any YouTuber can do.

• What is a Content ID Claim and Why Have I Received One
• Dealing With a Copyright Claim on Your YouTube Video

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Part 1： What is a Content ID Claim and Why Have I Received One?

YouTube copyright issues often come up as a result of content ID claims. This will prompt Google support to deliver a copyright notice to your account. Content ID claims are generally made against content that contains material that should not be available on YouTube. Claims are often issued if you don’t own the music, movie clips, TV clips, express rights to showcase cut scenes in video games, or other copyrighted media.

If you happen to see that a video has been muted or taken down you can visit the copyright notices section of your video manager to learn more. In this section you will learn more about what will be done as a result of the content ID claim.

Generally, a content ID claim does not put a YouTube channel in any kind of trouble. What usually happens is that the video is removed, you lose the ability to earn ad revenue from it, or the sound is muted so the copyrighted music no longer plays.

In some cases, the owner of the copyrighted content (usually musical artists) may choose to allow you to keep your video up in exchange for running their ads.

Part 2: Dealing With a Copyright Claim on Your YouTube Video

If you have received copyright claims there are ways that you can get your content put back up in its original condition.

First, you could purchase the rights to use the copyrighted media after your video has been flagged or try getting express permission from the content creator to use aspects of their content in your own original video.

Sometimes, your videos may be flagged even though you’ve already purchased the license for the copyrighted music, images or clips you are using.

YouTube’s robots automatically scan through the database of audio and visual content that is put up by copyright owners. Any video that has been uploaded to YouTube with this copyrighted content will receive a third-party copyright notice. Because flagging happens automatically it often affects creators who have licenses for the royalty-free music, or other copyrighted material, they are using.

The good news is that this same level of protection will ensure that your own original content can also be protected from reuse if you register it.

In order to dispute a copyright claim on your video the first thing that you will need is some proof that you have purchased the rights to the music or other content that is being reused in your video. If you have a direct link to the online license agreement this can help with the dispute process. Purchasing a license online for royalty-free music or other content is usually fairly simple and with a PDF license certificate you can quickly dispute copyright content ID claims.

You can upload your license document to the file sharing system Dropbox to make the content public for YouTube admins to check over. Heading over to your video manager on YouTube and sending a message link with the dispute and link to your license will make sure that your explanation is heard. Sending the license, written permission, or a link to the legal license will result in YouTube reinstating your video.

Most of the time the only information that you need to use is where the license was purchased as well as the link to where the copyright license document can be accessed.

After submitting your dispute YouTube admins will often take a few business days to get back to you with an answer. There is no risk involved in disputing a copyright claim; your video has already been flagged. In the worst case scenario, your video will remain flagged.

Usually with the help of an official license or direct permission from the content creator you can file a dispute with YouTube and receive an answer. If the dispute process is successful your video will be reinstated to the original uploaded version without blocked sound or content.

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Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

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