Google Lures Copyright Holders With ContentID System

In what could be a major turnaround for all those content owners who upload on YouTube, Google seeks to bring in a proposition to enable the content owners make money from advertising revenues surrounding their content, instead of removing it from the site for infringing copyright acts.

The search engine giant is reportedly putting forth the notion of a ‘fingerprinting system’ for the copyright holders, meaning that YouTube can recognise their content even when it has been modified and included in user-generated content.

The company’s fingerprinting device, dubbed as ContentID System, will enable copyright holders to either block or earn money from unauthorised use of their content.

After the unauthorised use of their material has been sited, right holders can either opt to have it deleted from the Google-owned video sharing site, or allow the website to place adverts around the video.

Revenues earned from placing ads around the videos would be proportionally divided between the holder and the website.

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As much as around one-third of the content monetised on the video sharing site has been uploaded by frequent users illicitly uploading the content, which the right holder has opted to keep up on the website in exchange for advertising revenues.

This would lay a win-win situation for both copyright holders and YouTube, while the proposition would allow the former to make money from their content, the latter would see a more lucrative revenue model.