The relationship between YouTube, its creators, music and rights managers is probably one of the most bitter on the Internet. From the early days when all kinds of copyright-protected content was uploaded indiscriminately, to a current situation where even making legitimate use of content a creator can face claims, it could almost be said that there has never been a real balance and, from your hand, a reasonably positive solution for all parties.
If you’re a YouTube consumer, chances are you’ve seen videos of creators criticizing copyright management by the managers (or their alleged managers, since some cases of fraud in this regard have already been detected). Jaime Altozano, Alvinsch and many other creators dedicated to the dissemination of music, see how despite adjusting their content to the legal conditions that allow the use of protected content, their creations receive claims that prevent their monetization and, in some cases, they may even have to face the famous strikes of the company.
Although some of the creators have been demanding for quite some time, greater protection by the platform, if we are fair we must recognize that YouTube is, in reality, in the middle of two conflicting interests, and that one of them has the reinforcement of the DMCAa legal aberration approved in the United States more than two decades ago, later imported with very few differences to Europe, and which grants disproportionate power to the owners of the rights.
Thus, any step taken by YouTube to balance the situation is, by definition, a step in the right direction. And in this sense, the Creator Music announcement is probably one of the most remarkable advances in this sense that have taken place in more than a decade. And it is that thanks to this function, the creators will be able to start monetizing videos even if they have music protected by copyright.
On the one hand, Creator Music will offer creators the possibility of obtaining affordable licenses to use music in your videos. In this case, of course, they will be able to monetize their videos exactly the same as if they did not have copyrighted music, that is, they will obtain the same percentage of income as in videos without music. On the other hand, and this is the most interesting option for many youtubers, when the creators do not want or cannot pay for a license, they can use songs and share your revenue with the song’s artist and associated rights holders. In both cases, yes, the songs used will necessarily have to be found in the Creator Music catalogue.
Creator Music is currently in beta and only available in the United States, although Google says it will reach more countries in 2023. If artists and rights managers finally decide to get off the bullshit they’ve been on for two decades, and allow the use of their catalogs on YouTube through Creator Music, YouTube could have found the definitive solution to a problem that, for years, it has tormented many creators, and this would be a huge success.
