Removing Branding?
Question by ZFZ: Removing Branding?
I live in WA state.
I made a script that displays YouTube videos on sites outside of YouTube.com without having the video player display the YouTube logo. I am selling the script. Is this against the law?
Best answer:
Answer by ParaNYC
“Removing Branding? I live in WA state.”
The quick answer to your questions is “Yes, it’s against the law.”
Use of the YouTube website is done under the Terms of Use that you can find at the url listed below. If you don’t adhere to the terms then you are not authorized to use the site. For example:
3. Website Access
A. YouTube hereby grants you permission to use the Website as set forth in this Terms of Service, provided that: (i) your use of the Website as permitted is solely for your personal, noncommercial use; (ii) you will not copy or distribute any part of the Website in any medium without YouTube’s prior written authorization; (iii) you will not alter or modify any part of the Website other than as may be reasonably necessary to use the Website for its intended purpose; and (iv) you will otherwise comply with the terms and conditions of these Terms of Service.
Your script violates these conditions (take a look at the rest) and is, in essence, a breach of the contract you made with YouTube when using their site. Additionally, your script violates various state and federal laws since you are basically stealing content from a internet provider.
Media outlets brand their content for a reason. If anyone were legally able to take the original content they have collected and redistribute it without permission, then people could go to the pirated version(s) instead of the real thing– thereby diluting the business of the company that did the actual work. That’s not fair. And it’s not legal.
While criminal prosecution is probably unlikely, if YouTube discovers what you’ve done, they’ll almost certainly take you and whoever is using your script to court. Remember, YouTube itself is being sued for allowing unlicensed content to appear on its site and has negotiated licenses with certain media outlets to keep from being sued over the same issue.
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