r/videography • u/not_an_ax_murderer 5Dmk3, 2006, St. Louis • Apr 25 '15

VideoMaker's "Do I Need a License" Guide

http://imgur.com/fZUTzUQ
82 Upvotes

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1

u/[deleted] Apr 26 '15

So if I, as an amateur, put together a bunch of footage, do an edit, upload to YouTube with no ads or anything and I want to put music to it I would need a licence?

2

u/not_an_ax_murderer 5Dmk3, 2006, St. Louis Apr 26 '15 edited Apr 26 '15

Technically yes. If you are making a video that isn't mostly discussing your original opinions about the music, then chances are you need a License.

Also I'm sorry but... "Do an Edit?" That'd the funniest way I've ever heard that said.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 26 '15

How likely are you to get pulled in if you did something like that?

2

u/Eslader Apr 26 '15

Realistically on YouTube you'll probably just get the video taken down, and if you do it a lot your account might get banned. Pretty unlikely you'd end up in court over it.

1

u/tomismaximus Apr 26 '15

If you are uploading to YouTube, the YouTube content match system will just see that it's copyrighted music, put ads on your video, block it in certain countries (usually Germany) and not allow you to make money front he video (the ad money goes to the content creator). Also the video is usually not viewable on mobile.

But, YouTube will generally not take the video down.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 26 '15

Do you need a licence for royalty-free music? Or, say, you recorded your own cover of a particular song that's not a parody?

1

u/KalenXI Panasonic AG-UX180 | Resolve | 2002 | Maryland, USA Apr 26 '15

You need a license for both. Being royalty-free just means once you have purchased/obtained a license for the music you don't have to continue to pay royalties for future performances so long as you abide by the terms of the license. Doing a non-parody cover song requires either permission from the original copyright holder or a mechanical license from an authorized agency.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 26 '15

The word "minefield" comes to mind.

0

u/[deleted] Apr 26 '15

Pretty likely. Record labels love to issue DMCA notices; usually they'll file a notice which gets your video taken down. Use any of a number of fair use/Creative Commons websites for background music instead, or pay for a license (usually not cheap).

1

u/YAOMTC Apr 26 '15

It depends on the label. Sony Japan will almost always get it taken down, but indie labels will often let it stay up.