Hi, I would like to start an anime music video website that streams user videos. Obviously the material and songs would be copyrighted but the way it has been edited would be original...is it legal to make a site like this? what legal actions would I need to take to protect myself?
I dont think so that it would be legal. If you are using someone else copyrighted work than they can sue you anytime they want In order to make it legal contact the person whose anime video you are uploading on your site and ask them whether you can upload their video on your site
Hi, mate ! But I think its entirely legal if he orginally owns the content, if you have doubt about your content then you're some where to illegal. Now I think its cleared that what you need to know. Kind Regards . .
Thanks for the responses, I'm really trying to get a solid answer to this. I feel like I SHOULD be able to make this site, but since the content of the music videos are copyrighted, it makes me worry. The music videos would be user created and submitted, so I would need for the user to digitally sign saying the video is their own work. What else can I do to protect myself incase someone uploads something that isn't their own?
The videos themselves are going to be fine. What isn't fine is if those videos include copyrighted content, i.e. the background music. Your users will need to license the music for use in their videos. If the videos you host (regardless if they are original or not) violate copyright (which they would), they aren't going to be legal.
That's what I was afraid of. But that just doesn't seem fair...I wouldn't be making profit off the copyrighted material...obviously the site would be dedicated to the art of making music videos. You can't expect people to have their very own footage and music for that. Is there no way around it??
Still doesn't matter. Whether the whole thing is fair or silly or not, is really neither here nor there. I do agree with you though. The music industry is one that has gotten completely out of control. On the flip side, it is somebody's work, and they should be paid for it. I would contact ASCAP or BMI (they cover almost everything in the US) and ask them specific questions, as well as the rates. Last project I did, the minimum licensing fee was about $300/year, and that gives you access to their entire music library...basically everything they license. You can probably license specific songs too. But, what a mess to go through for every single video. I agree.
Thanks WSWD and everyone. Though that really sucks! lol. Obviously this is more for fun than for profit. Just a hobby. So spending $300 a year for it is a real downer. Wish there were another way =/
Lets assume that starting off I check each video personally to make sure it's not just a movie or episode, that it's actually a very edited music video. I doubt anyone would shut me down right away, and obviously I want to see how a site like this would do before investing hundreds into it. What's the worst that could happen if I don't have ASCAP or BMI backing me up? Would they just shut down my site or what?
Well yeah, you could always give it a try and see what happens. You definitely don't want to tell the provider ahead of time, because they will most-likely say no, unless it's some fly-by-night company run by kids who just don't care. There is always offshore hosting too, where they aren't going to care about DMCA complaints regardless. But they could always go after you personally anyway. Basically, your provider and/or you will get a DMCA complaint and act on it from there. You would be asked to remove the offending content (most likely not suspended or have your account deleted). After that, you're done. Usually no 2nd chances. Now whether or not ASCAP/BMI/the Artist(s) would sue you over the previous use of their material and make you pay, who knows? It probably isn't very likely though.