All That You Need To Know About Copyright Strike And Copyright Claim

Sarah Iqbal, Amisha Shukla

2021-02-19

With a lot of content shared over different platforms every minute on the world wide web, copyright has emerged as a significant concern for content creators and artists. This is because copyright entrusts the right on the content creators to protect their interests and at the same time also restraints other people from infringing their rights. 

So, If you are an artist or content creator wondering what exactly is copyright, what is copyright claim and what is copyright strike, then you have landed at the right place. Here we bring you a complete and detailed analysis of a copyright, a copyright claim, a copyright strike, and the difference between copyright claim and copyright strike.

To protect the uniqueness and originality of every artists' creative work, copyright in the present time has attained a greater significance. In simple words, every unique idea over the internet that is initially yours becomes your copyright, and you enjoy exclusive rights over that. As a result, anybody willing to share, post or use your content will seek your permission. 

  • What is a copyright?

To begin with, the understanding of 'copyright claims' and 'copyright strikes' is first significant to understanding the concept of copyright. 

The word copyright refers to an individual's intellectual property for his original creative work. To obtain or qualify for copyright, it is significant that the work must meet minimal standards of originality. In the legal sense, copyright gives the owner an exclusive right over their intellectual property. The concept of copyright is intended to protect the original creative work of the artist.

  • What is a copyright claim?

A copyright claim is when a right holder identifies and objects to the use of their intellectual property. For example, it generally happens when the content that you use in your video/ music album belongs essentially to someone else, and they assert that you have used their intellectual property without seeking the requisite permissions.

On claiming ownership of their content, YouTube verifies the valid owner of the intellectual property in question and awards the revenue generated by the video to its proper owner. As a result, the one subjected to copyright infringement loses the revenue, and the right holder gains it. 

  • What is a copyright strike?

A copyright is a graver concern as compared to a copyright claim. While in the case of a copyright claim, the content that's flagged as having unsolicited content may not be taken down completely, in the case of a copyright strike, the intellectual property holder may have the unsolicited content wholly taken off of the internet. A copyright strike has a much more adverse impact on one's channel, and having three copyright strikes may even lead to the channel's termination. Henceforth, the creator will be banned from creating a new channel and posting content. A copyright strike essentially lasts for three months. The recipient of a copyright strike cannot live stream videos from his channel and cannot monetize the flagged video. 

  • Difference between copyright claim and copyright strike

A copyright strike is a much more severe adversary than a copyright claim. If you are wondering what the difference between copyright claims and copyright strike is, then you have come to the right place. We at Melo Music distributors have a stringent copyright policy and ensure that user content is entirely safe from infringement. 

Let's delve deeper into both concepts to understand them better. 

A copyright strike is primarily issued when a rights owner requests legal removal of a video from YouTube because the video's uploader did not take their permission before using their intellectual property. Copyright strikes are manual requests that work under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act(DMCA). Once the owner furnishes specific information and proof regarding infringement of their content, a takedown request is initiated. The specific information required to be furnished by the owner to initiate a takedown request includes the following:

  • Their contact information 

  • A detailed description of the content that the owners want to be protected 

  • It is an undertaking and statement of good faith that their material has been used without their permission or consent. 

Copyright claims or ContentID claims come with imposing monetization, tracking, or viewing restrictions on the content flagged for infringement. It is upon the owner's discretion to decide the platforms or the regions where the flagged content may go live. Other discretionary rights of the owner include: 

  • Blocking the entire video from being viewed on YouTube on any other platform. 

  • Monetize the video by placing ads against it - this might come with the option of a potential revenue share with the uploader.

  • Monitor the video's viewership statistics that disables any monetization and lets the owner see how well the flagged video performs if they choose to claim any revenue in the future.

Refer to the table below for a summary of the difference between copyright claim and copyright strike: 

Copyright Claim 

Copyright Strike 

Available only to select partners. 

Available to any owner of intellectual property. 

Is usually an automatic process run by the digital rights management tool. 

Manually submitted by the owner of the content. 

Owners can track, monetize and block the video. 

The flagged video is removed across all platforms.