Can I avoid constant incorrect copyright claims.

[sydh]

Yet again I have published a video and instantly I receive a copyright claim from Sony. This is now happening with virtually every video I upload. All the files I use are Public Domain and in this case it was from Freesound.org. It was a recording of woodland birds, so not even music. Today I receive an email stating they have refused my dispute so once again I now have to search out all the details of the file with a link to the file.
I often use classical music background and 100% of the music I use is from Musopen, yet every single time I receive a claim.
It is so annoying considering I go to great lengths to ensure everything I use is legal and free of copyright. Worse still, I have even had claims against natural background sounds recorded through the camera.
Is there any way at all to stop these constant false claims? Considering I receive no money due to the 1,000 subscriber rule, this is making me reconsider if YouTube is worth all this hassle.

 

[sydh]

Here we go again. Another two claims today on a video I published years ago. Once again they are trying to claim against Public Domain music. This time it's a company called TuneCore.
Does no one have any advice then?

 

[cbpayne]

"However, please note that Musopen cannot guarantee that any music uploaded by its users is, in fact, in the public domain. "

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) - Musopen.org

Frequently asked questions about Musopen.org. This page answers questions about copyright laws, public domain works, how to contribute and use Musopen content.

musopen.org

 

[sydh]

"However, please note that Musopen cannot guarantee that any music uploaded by its users is, in fact, in the public domain. "

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) - Musopen.org

Frequently asked questions about Musopen.org. This page answers questions about copyright laws, public domain works, how to contribute and use Musopen content.

musopen.org

I understand that, but they also state "If you are a copyright owner, or agent thereof, and find works on Musopen that you want us to remove, please visit our DMCA Notification Guidelines to report the instance in question."
Therefore the claimant should also be contacting Musopen, otherwise that specific piece of music could be used repeatedly by other persons. If they had contacted Musopen and proved they are the owner, then it would be assumed Musopen would remove the item from their database. Prior to that happening, there is no way any Musopen member could determine if any item is not PD.
In practice, to date, I have had countless claims against my videos, some regarding Musopen downloads, some regarding Freesound.org downloads (which are definitely PD), and even some claims have been against my own background sounds recorded through my own cameras. I dispute every claim in good faith, and to date, every claim has been retracted, even those that I have had to appeal against, as was the case with Sony.
As I said, this week alone, I have two disputes and one appeal in progress. Is it worth all the hassle? I wonder how much money these companies are earning falsely from YouTube members who simply can't be bothered to dispute the claims.

 

[cbpayne]

They are under no obligation to contact Musopen.
They may not even know that its on Musopen.

 

[sydh]

This is not answering my original question. A better solution would be for YouTube to demand the claimant run a human check if the Youtuber states on the video that the content is in the PD. All the onus is on the youtuber at present. Guilty until proved innocent.

 

[Acerthorn]

Unfortunately, there is no way you can completely block these claimants. They have the right to place copyright claims on your video as long as they're in good faith. Convincing youtube that these claims are made in bad faith would require a lot more evidence than simply proving that you aren't in violation of copyright.

 

[Acerthorn]

You might find this stickied thread useful: http://yttalk.com/threads/got-a-copyright-claim-not-from-the-copyright-holder-read-this.155896/

 

[Tito Tims Videos]

I use PowerDirector for my editing. It comes with a lot of music and sound effects. Every time I use any of the music I get hit for a copyright. Every time YouTube finds in my favor (more likely the claimant just does not follow up - same thing). I have a saved bit of text, saying I have the right to use the sounds...but I have to provide it every time. Right now the system is very flawed, and not likely to change.

I guess the YT music might be safe? But I have not found any I really like.

I do use music from SoundCloud. It is provided by the author and so far has never been hit. I like the music by Ikson (kind of lo-fi hip hop)

 

[UKHypnotist]

A common mistake video creators make is in distinguishing between the different types of copyright involved in music. This includes classical compositions which are obviously in the Public Domain due to age. Any piece of music has at least two, and possibly as many as four copyrights involved.

The first is of course, for the composition itself. The second would come into play if there are lyrics involved in the musical piece. I know of at least two modern recording artists who based songs on Public Domain classical compositions and now have copyrighted recordings based on these pieces with lyrics added. The sound recordings themselves are the third copyright type; and this is most likely the source of @sydh's problem. The fourth copyright would be for the arrangement of the music.

You see, a composer can be dead for a century or more; but the minute a new arrangement of the music is done, that arrangement comes under copyright. Any recorded performance of the music would also be under copyright, unless the recording is also more than 100 years old. 100 years after production is a safe point to consider something to be out of copyright in general; as when the Digital Millenium Copyright Act was written, and countries cloned it for their own use, it was stated in different ways, according to the country applying it.

In the USA, where this law originated, copyright is in effect until 75 years after a recording artist's death, unless it is renewed by the record company which held the recording contract. Same for composers, lyricists and arrangers, unless a legal heir somehow exists and wants to renew the copyright.

I know @sydh will say this doesn't answer his question, so I will give an answer to footnote this explanation.

No; you can't avoid constant copyright claims if you use recorded music which may still be under copyright. As different orchestra recordings of a work may sound similar, Content ID's algorithm finds false positives all the time. The only way to avoid claims entirely, and even this doesn't always work (I am living proof of this), is to compose your own music for use in your videos.