Nintendo is now preparing a copyright infringement complaint against YouTube and channels using their games.
Rooster Teeth's Let's Play videos by Lewis Turner that currently have 111 uploaded videos and over 74,896 views are now being pursued by Nintendo due to copyright infringement. Users that are earning money using Nintendo games will be compelled to pay Nintendo once they have identified that someone is using their game copy based on the "content ID match".
YouTube has developed their own set of copyright policies that help protect companies and control the contents being uploaded. The Content ID works to find a match based on the references of the copyright owner who have partnered with YouTube.
Zack Scott, a YouTube user who use videos to earn money and owns ZackScottGames, wasn't happy about Nintendo's move. He posted in Facebook this message:
I just want to express my feelings on the matter of Nintendo claiming not just my YouTube videos, but from several LPers as well.
I'm a Nintendo fan. I waited in the cold overnight to get a Wii. I'm a 3DS ambassador. I got a Wii U at midnight when I already had one in the mail. I've been a Nintendo fan since the NES, and I've owned all of their systems.
With that said, I think filing claims against LPers is backwards. Video games aren't like movies or TV. Each play-through is a unique audiovisual experience. When I see a film that someone else is also watching, I don't need to see it again. When I see a game that someone else is playing, I want to play that game for myself! Sure, there may be some people who watch games rather than play them, but are those people even gamers?
My viewers watch my gameplay videos for three main reasons:
1. To hear my commentary/review.
2. To learn about the game and how to play certain parts.
3. To see how I handle and react to certain parts of the game.
Since I started my gaming channel, I've played a lot of games. I love Nintendo, so I've included their games in my line-up. But until their claims are straightened out, I won't be playing their games. I won't because it jeopardizes my channel's copyright standing and the livelihood of all LPers.
ZackScottGames has 195,307 subscribers and have generated over 81,496,957 views to date.
Nintendo have partnered with YouTube last February 2013 to benefit from the content ID and ensure that the brand is being shared in a proper and secured way. They have responded to Zack and said that they are will not force him to close the channel but the latter decided to stop promoting the videos since he will not earn anything.
