YouTube is now banishing Partners that are caught re-uploading content found on another channel.
In a recent blog post, the company detailed how it was paying more attention to creators in the YouTube Partner Program after finding a handful of channels that don't comply with the YPP policies.
The particular focus of the post was 'duplicative content', meaning footage that has been uploaded elsewhere and then re-posted on a separate channel.
YouTube outlined the following examples of content that could be removed for duplication:
- Appears to be automatically generated
- Pulled from third party sources with no content or narrative added by the creator
- Uploaded many times by multiple users and you’re not the original uploader
- Uploaded in a way that is trying to get around our copyright tools
If creators are found to be in violation of the platform's policies, their channel could be removed from the YouTube Partner Program, and the benefits of the program will be revoked.
Contextual copying
Interestingly, it isn't just copyright that YouTube is looking out for. The post also says "even if you have licenses to use the content or your videos are protected by copyright laws, such as fair use, if the main purpose of your channel is to monetize other channels’ or sources’ content, then you won’t be eligible for YPP".
This looks like YouTube implementing some kind of quality control, making sure creators are using content for a reason, even if it falls under fair use. The post says that creators "still need to be contributing to the value of that content in some way".
An example of this would be The Philip DeFranco show. DeFranco often pulls clips from other channels to feature in his daily news show but adds his own commentary and context.
YouTube confirmed that duplicative content only violates rules bound to the Partner Program, and not the overall community guidelines. Users outside of the YPP can still upload duplicated content, but they're not allowed to monetise it.
