I've been getting 1960s public domain Atomic Energy Commission films scanned from 16mm reels at the National Archives and posting on YouTube. I noticed they were running a lot of ads even though I had monetization off. Turns out, each one got a few copyright claims from people who apparently release "remastered" old music in the 2010s. I got annoyed and disputed them all and as of yesterday the claims have all been released. What a pain.
I only skimmed through the article, but if I understood correctly the scammers made $23m, now have to repay $3.3m (which probably will never happen) and some of their assets were taken. They were given 4 and 6 year prison sentences (which might be cut short for good conduct I assume).<p>So in 3 years these blokes come out, with probably ~5m-10m stashed away? Not a bad ROI :(.
Finally, some justice in the Wild West of YouTube copyright claims. Scammers forced to cough up $3.3M is a drop in the ocean compared to the havoc they've wreaked, but it's a start. Let's hope this sets a precedent and not just a one-off feel-good headline. Next step: overhaul the entire copyright ID system so genuine creators don't have to jump through hoops to prove they own their own work. It should be way harder to file copyright claims and actually take down content from Youtube, the amount of power these "copyright holders" have is crazy.
The whole industry is a con, and only the music/performance is real.<p>Disputes about Fiscal and Promotional gains from content duplication go back to before Johannes Gutenberg. Up till very recently, there was a clear distinction between the act of duplication for profit, and monetizing peoples gaze.<p>Indeed, the copyright industry has had a windfall due to successful lobbying, and no one dares mess with Disney. The criminals were just late to the Securitization of pop-culture.<p>The main tragedy is most companies no longer respect the mediums or content quality. Ripping off Mark Hamill with ML technology CGI was just the final insult to the profession, and a ludicrous perversion of Copyright law.<p>Have a wonderful day =)