In this post, I want to address an issue that we have on the Steem blockchain - Intellectual Property theft.
I am referring specifically to DTube in this post, even though the problem is rampant across the blockchain. One of the great things about this chain, is that it is decentralised, so there is no one authority that can censor content here, or ask you to take stuff down. As such, people feel free to use content they don't own, without the consent of the original creator of the content.
Photography is a big one. For some reason, people are under the impression that just giving the source of the image is enough. It isn't, unless the legal owner of the photo say it is. The reason why we are not having more trouble with this is because the Internet is so large, and the original owner of the content will never come across it being used here.
I made a post a while ago about where you can get high quality photos by professional and enthusiast photographers that have waived copyright completely. That means you are permitted to use the the photos as you please - even without referencing the source. I think this is the best way to use photos here if you need to and you're unable to create your own photos.
Back to DTube.
I'm going to talk about the correct way of stealing YouTube, Vimeo or Dailymotion videos for Steem. Before then, let me highlight the two types of video 'thieves' we have here.
1. The deliberate thief: is the person who downloads a video from another platform belonging to someone else, and uploads it unto DTube hoping for an upvote. Apart from being illegal and unethical, this is a thoroughly pointless exercise! The DTube account, and other curators will never knowingly upvote such content. So apart from being a content thief, you are clogging up our IPFS servers and annoying everyone. Stop it. It's a waste of everyone's time, including yours.
2. The unwitting thief: is the person who sincerely just wants to share a video with his/her followers. It's usually a music video or a mini documentary found on a different platform. Downloading the video and uploading to DTube without the express permission of the original content creator is theft, regardless of intention.
The correct way
Going direct to the point, the correct way to share someone else's video from Youtube and other such platforms is to embed it in a Steem post. All their recent floors withstanding, Busy.org and eSteem are the best ways to embed a video on the Steem blockchain. Steemit.com and others can also embed but Steemit will not play the video inline. It will present the thumbnail which will link to the original YouTube page, for example.
So why is embedding legal and downloading-uploading not? That's a great question :)
When creators upload to YouTube and other such platforms, they do so under the standard licence which includes the ability for third parties, (that's you), to embed the video on their websites. There is a switch to disable embedding on YouTube and other platforms, so if the creator doesn't want you embedding their content, they can say so. What that means is that you can safely assume the original creator is ok with the embedding.
The second bene fit is that you don't have to add a source. By embedding, the source is automatically there. In essence, you are actually helping out the original content creator by advertising their content and providing more avenues for their content to be seen. It's like tweeting it or sharing to FaceBook.
The third benefit is that both you and the creator benefit from the views. If the OG creator is monetised on YouTube for instance, each view of the video on your post counts towards their views. You, of course, benefit from the potential upvotes here on Steem. Win-win.
Non of the above content - copy nor video - is financial or legal advice.
Peace and Love ✌🏿
Adé
All copy and photos are original content by me.
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