Disney backs down from 'Steamboat Willie' YouTube copyright claim
mashable.com
• Disney retracts copyright claim on a YouTuber's "Steamboat Willie" video, allowing it to be monetizable and shareable worldwide.
• The claim had previously demonetized the video and restricted its visibility and embedding options.
• This move by Disney may signal its recognition of "Steamboat Willie" being in the public domain.
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Disney, or anyone for that matter, can copyright claim any video. Youtube just plays ball because that's the simplest thing to do.
It's on them to prove, in court, that it actually is copyrightable and that they own the copyright to the content, which they'd fail to do.
The win is for the uploader and for the public, since now you can "be sure" that Disney won't take you to court over it, which would be a costly endeavor for you. Even if Disney would almost surely lose.
Maybe the creator was in a SLAPP state and Disney was going to be paying for their lawyers anyway.
Afraid it doesn't apply to copyright claims, but I might be wrong on that
Maybe?
Well, damn it, it should. That's a prime example of an abusive suit, with media companies holding all the cards and quite willing to toss takedowns over the wall if the recipients are too afraid or poor to fight obviously baseless claims.
I think people misunderstand this and that you explained it well. It wasn't a court that struck down the video, it was YouTube. I'm not sure though what American law has to say about monolithic platforms like YouTube and hosting public domain content.
If it’s public domain, then by definition anyone can upload it, for any purpose, and monetise it however they see fit. YouTube could ban anyone else from uploading Steamboat Willie and only have their own version to watch, or they could let literally millions of people upload versions. They can basically do whatever they want with it now.