[FC-discuss] Automatic Copyright Enforcement Threatens Fair Use

[FreeCulture.org - Students for Free Culture]

Yesterday, Google introduced its [automatic copyright filter][1] for
YouTube. The service will compare user-submitted content against
copyright owner-submitted content. Content submitted by users which
matches that of the copyright owners will be flagged for either:
blocking, promoting or revenue sharing.

As I have [said][2] [before][3], a binary solution to a non-binary
problem is dangerous. The issue of copyright is not black or white -
principles like fair use make copyright a subjective matter of which a
computer is not the best judge.

According to [Gigi Sohn at Public Knowledge][4], a few seconds of
matching will not be sufficient to block the submitted video, but
because fair use can be much longer than a few seconds (think about the
documentary [Outfoxed][5]), this places a previously absent burden upon
YouTube users.

Before these binary solutions, copyright owners needed to challenge
reuses they thought were not fair use. Now, citizens need to justify
their fair use.

   [1]: http://www.youtube.com/t/video_id_about

   [2]: http://www.copyrightings.com/2007/02/more-black-and-white-
solutions-to-gray.html

   [3]: http://www.copyrightings.com/2006/12/copyright-violation-to-be-
automatically_19.html

   [4]: http://www.publicknowledge.org/node/1217

   [5]: http://www.outfoxed.org/

URL: http://freeculture.org/blog/2007/10/16/automatic-copyright-enforcement-threatens-fair-use/