{"id":1536,"date":"2025-12-19T14:01:49","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T14:01:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/news\/copyright-in-the-age-of-digitization-who-is-responsible-for-publishing-copyrighted-content-on-video-sharing-platforms\/"},"modified":"2025-12-19T14:22:29","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T14:22:29","slug":"copyright-in-the-age-of-digitization-who-is-responsible-for-publishing-copyrighted-content-on-video-sharing-platforms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/views\/copyright-in-the-age-of-digitization-who-is-responsible-for-publishing-copyrighted-content-on-video-sharing-platforms\/","title":{"rendered":"Copyright in the age of digitization: Who is responsible for publishing copyrighted content on video sharing platforms?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Video sharing platforms – YouTube,<\/strong> Vimeo \nand TikTok<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Video sharing platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo \nand TikTok have become primary channels for the \ndistribution of creative work, providing access to a \nwide range of user-generated content. Those platforms \ngive significant access to cultural and creative works by \ncreating opportunities to develop innovative business \nmodels within the cultural and creative industries. \nHowever, while facilitating the availability and diversity \nof content, they also pose legal challenges when \ncopyrighted content is placed on platforms without the prior approval of the copyright holders. In this text, we \nexplore who is responsible for obtaining permissions \nand paying fees when publishing copyrighted works on \nthose platforms, shedding light on the resulting legal \nuncertainty in the process.<\/p>\n\n

Responsibility of users and platforms: \nWhere does the legal obligation lie?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Movies, music and other copyrighted content often \nappear on video sharing platforms in video clips generated \nby users of those platforms, either as background or \nas part of the primary narrative. This situation raises \na question \u2013 who should bear the responsibility for \npossible copyright infringements when the rights to the \nposted content have not been obtained? Is it the user \nwho uploaded the content, or the platform itself that \nallows the content to be shared?<\/p>\n\n

Our existing legal solutions do not adequately address \nsaid issue, leaving room for various interpretations. First \nof all, it is necessary to explain that the act of posting, \ni.e. displaying author\u2019s works on the platform, in the \nsense of copyright law, implies interactively making \nthose contents available to the public, which actually \nmeans allowing a person individual access to the work \nfrom the place and at the time of their choosing, which \nis the exclusive right of the author or the copyright \nholder. <\/p>\n\n

The argument that the user is responsible for \nany unauthorized publication of the work is derived \nfrom the fact that they are the one who, by placing \nprotected content on the platform, make the content in \nquestion available to the public. On the other hand, we \ncannot ignore the fact that the platform has a significant \ninfluence on what will be shown and the way in which the \ncontent will be organized, thanks to its algorithms that \ndirect the audience\u2019s attention. However, platforms are \ngenerally not responsible for content posted by users, as \nthey are considered to be mere intermediaries that are \nsubject to the safe harbor rule under the e-commerce \nregulation. Namely, that rule allows online platforms, \nincluding social networks, video sharing platforms, \nand e-commerce websites, to generally not be held \nresponsible for user-generated content. However, to \nenjoy that protection, platforms must act quickly and \nremove illegal material after receiving a valid takedown \nnotice from the copyright holder.<\/p>\n\n

Therefore, by taking into account all of the above, we \ncome to the conclusion that according to the domestic \nlegal frame, it is still the platform users who have the \nobligation to obtain permission from the copyright \nholders and pay a fee before publishing protected content.<\/p>\n\n

However, that is difficult to achieve, considering \nthe enormous number of users and the amount of \ncontent that is published daily. Moreover, there is often \nno contact between the copyright holders and the users \n\u2013 the latter are often unable to identify who the copyright \nholder is, while copyright holders are often unaware that \ntheir content has been published online. That situation \nfurther complicates the process of compliance with \nthe legal requirements and makes copyright protection \nmore difficult.<\/p>\n\n

EU reaction: \nDirective as a solution to legal uncertainty<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

In light of those facts, the institutions of the European \nUnion have taken decisive steps to resolve the gap \nbetween the existing regulation and reality regarding \nthe protection of copyright in the digital environment. \nWith the current advancement of digital technologies, \nit has become apparent that the existing legislative \nframework is insufficient to protect copyright, especially \nwhen copyrighted works are published on video sharing \nplatforms. In that context, Directive (EU) 2019\/790 \non copyright and related rights in the digital single \nmarket of April 17, 2019 represents a key response to \nthat particular legal uncertainty, as it clearly defines \nthe obligation of operators of video sharing platforms \nto obtain permission from copyright holders before \nproviding access to copyrighted works.<\/p>\n\n

Directive (EU) 2019\/790<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

That directive not only resolves the long-standing dilemma of who bears the responsibility for public communication, i.e. for interactively making copyrighted works available, but also strengthens the position of copyright holders by enabling them to more effectively exercise their rights in the digital environment. Based on that new legislative framework, platform operators can no longer rely on the protection of the safe harbor institution from the previous regulations, but are directly responsible \nfor any unauthorized publication of content on their platforms, which significantly improves the protection of intellectual property rights in the contemporary digital world.<\/p>\n\n

Domestic regulation: The key to advancing \ncopyright in the digital environment<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

In order to improve the situation on the domestic market, \nit is important to adapt our legislation so that it reflects \nthe contemporary challenges and realities created by \nthe digital environment. In that sense, we can rely on \nDirective (EU) 2019\/790, which provides clear guidelines \nand a legal framework for copyright management in the \ncontext of video sharing platforms. By introducing those \nrules, we will not only solve numerous legal uncertainties \nin relation to the responsibility of users and platforms \nbut we will also achieve a balance between the freedom \nof expression and copyright protection.<\/p>\n\n

Namely, a clear definition of the obligations that are \nset for both users and platform operators enables the \ncreation of a more transparent environment in which all \nparticipants will be able to act with more security. When \nusers understand their responsibilities in relation to \nobtaining necessary permissions from copyright holders, \nthey are able to use video sharing platforms without fear \nof legal consequences. That not only improves creativity \nand the freedom of expression but also secures the \nnecessary protection to authors and copyright holders.<\/p>\n\n

Moreover, the implementation of those rules will decrease \nthe existing imbalance between the value of the created \ncontent and the income earned by the copyright holders. \nThat will create an incentive for further development \nof the creative industry and provide sustainability for \nartists, authors, and content creators. Finally, adequate \nlegal solutions can contribute to strengthening the trust \nin digital platforms, which is crucial for the survival and \ngrowth of the domestic market in the era of digitization.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Video sharing platforms – YouTube, Vimeo and TikTok Video sharing platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo and TikTok have become primary channels for the distribution of creative work, providing access to a wide range of user-generated content. Those platforms give significant access to cultural and creative works by creating opportunities to develop innovative business models within […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1535,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"Copyright on the Internet: Legal Framework and Liability","description":"Copyright on the Internet and the Liability of Platforms and Users. Legal Framework and Protection of Rights in the Digital Environment."},"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uvidi","category-views"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1536"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1536\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1535"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/t-s.legal\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}