YouTube sent me an email claiming a copyright issue. Help!
Ok. First things first. You probably didn’t do anything wrong. There are multiple reasons why YouTube sends these emails. So let’s explain how to solve it.
We can help you, but we do need details
When we receive an email like ‘Help, I got a copyright claim from YT’ we instantly want to help but we need to know more about the video, the song, etc.
What content has been flagged?
There is probably a link to the content in the email you received or you will find information in the YouTube Creator Studio “Content” section behind the videos uploaded.
YouTube is using two different terms: copyright takedown notice & Content ID claim
Copyright takedown notice
If you use a picture, song, video owned by someone else without his/her consent, the owner of the copyright can reach out to YouTube and file a complaint. You will receive a copyright takedown notice from YouTube. If you don’t do anything or can’t convince YouTube your content is perfectly legal you will get a copyright strike. After 3 strikes, your channel will be terminated.
Content ID claim
This is something different. YouTube is using an automated system to check for potential copyright issues. YouTube’s technology ‘Content ID’ is not perfect. In many cases the system will find a video that features ‘registered’ content and automatically sends you a claim. If your video has been claimed, it doesn’t mean that you’ve got a copyright strike but it will stop you from monetizing (ad revenue) the video because someone else should receive the money. This process is automated and YouTube’s Content ID is far from perfect so also here you do get a chance to dispute the claim.
I paid for a Tribe of Noise PRO license! Why the claim?
A known artist, registered on Content ID, might have used the same royalty free sample as one of our artists. The automated system recognizes the sample and ‘thinks’ it was exclusively licensed to the artist they have on file. Or artists we work with did register their songs on Content ID to protect themselves from fraud and copyright infringement.
Don’t worry. You bought a Tribe of Noise PRO license so you are granted the right to use the song in your project. You haven’t infringed copyright and don’t need to worry. You will be able to clear the claim.
THIS IS HOW YOU CLEAR THE YOUTUBE CLAIM
STEP 1
You have a Tribe of Noise PRO license so dispute the claim. You will find the ‘DISPUTE’ option on the YouTube page by clicking ‘select action’.
STEP 2
YouTube will ask you to double check the reason for disputing. Since you have a Tribe of Noise PRO license, ignore the 3 BIG icons but instead check the box and hit continue.
Now you can select you have a license to use this song in your video:
YouTube is making sure you really, really understand you are doing the right thing here. Check the box and continue:
STEP 3
Now you can show you have purchased a Tribe of Noise PRO license!
- Copy/paste the text of the Tribe of Noise certificate1 in the license information box
- Tick the boxes
- Sign with your name
- Submit the dispute
1 The text of your certificate can be found on Tribe of Noise PRO > login > click on your profile in the top right corner > select 'My purchases' in the dropdown > select 'Show certificate'.
Final Step!
Please contact us with a short message, a link to the YouTube video and the URL of the Tribe of Noise PRO certificate so we know this is done. In the background we can reach out to the musician to make sure he/she will remove the claim or even whitelist your channel.
It normally takes a few days before you see any result.