Questions about Creative Commons videos

[imbelhassen]

Hi,

I would like to ask about the use of creative commons videos on youtube. I know its the type of license that give you permission to use the video even for commercial use, but what is the limit of that, I mean is it ok even to just reupload the entire video on your channel without any modification other then a link to your website ?

I have a website where I sell softwares, I am thinking about using creative commons to promote each one the softwares on my website, by selecting two or three creative commons videos that are about the same functionality or subject as one of the softwares I am promoting, mix them together with little modification as cutting parts that I don't see relative or the parts that promote another website (but without adding a video of my own) and add a text in the video promoting my website, then add the software page and the main page of my website in the description, and embed the video to the "video tips and tutorials" section of my website as well. Is that considered a legal use of the creative commons videos ? and is this type of videos allowed in youtube and not considered as a spam or promotion video or reuploading ?


Youtube take care of the attributions, but when I publish my video on my website do I need to give the attributes to the other videos as well ? and if yes what is the best format.

And Finally, can I upload my video to other video websites similar to youtube if I give the attribution to the others videos in the description ? and again what is the best format for that ?

 

[UKHypnotist]

First of all, if the videos you want to use are not the exact software you are selling, all you will do is confuse the viewer. Can you not take a camera and film the software you are selling? You may need to get the software publisher's permission to film packaging, screen shots of functionality, etc.

 

[imbelhassen]

First of all, if the videos you want to use are not the exact software you are selling, all you will do is confuse the viewer. Can you not take a camera and film the software you are selling? You may need to get the software publisher's permission to film packaging, screen shots of functionality, etc.

Thanks for your reply, maybe I didn't make myself clear, I am not making a video about the software I am selling, I am making a video that shows other softwares and method that have the same functionality of the software I am selling. And then in the description I add the link to my software as a suggestion like "Also see".

 

[UKHypnotist]

Thanks for your reply, maybe I didn't make myself clear, I am not making a video about the software I am selling, I am making a video that shows other softwares and method that have the same functionality of the software I am selling. And then in the description I add the link to my software as a suggestion like "Also see".

Ok, I am still a bit confused here.

When you say,

Youtube take care of the attributions, but when I publish my video on my website do I need to give the attributes to the other videos as well ? and if yes what is the best format.

exactly what other videos do you mean? And do you mean the video you posted to YouTube when you say "my video"? And the attribution would be the same; I don't really know anything about 'different formats'; you just state the video's original source and author. I think you may be overcomplicating things here. You also need to make sure that the videos you use as source actually allow compilation and mixing with other videos.

Are the videos you plan to use actually under a Creative Commons (Commercial - Attrib) License ? There are different levels of CC license and you need to make sure you are using the right one.

Also, if you are trying to sell software, adding yours as an afterthought in the description isn't likely to get you very many sales; plus a link which directs people offsite to your sales page may violate YouTube's Terms of use. Note the following statement from their policies at: https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/2801973

"If the main purpose of your content is to drive people off of YouTube and onto another site, it will likely violate our spam policies."

Most people see videos whose main end purpose is to sell them something as "video spam". What are you actually trying to do with your YouTube channel? If it is merely a vehicle for a sales scheme, you may be better off finding another method.

 

[imbelhassen]

exactly what other videos do you mean? And do you mean the video you posted to YouTube when you say "my video"? And the attribution would be the same; I don't really know anything about 'different formats'; you just state the video's original source and author. I think you may be overcomplicating things here. You also need to make sure that the videos you use as source actually allow compilation and mixing with other videos.

"Other videos" mean the videos I mixed to make my video. "my video" mean the end result of mixing creative commons videos. and I am using youtube editor to mix the videos which will automatically allow me to only use creative commons videos.

Also, if you are trying to sell software, adding yours as an afterthought in the description isn't likely to get you very many sales;

Well in my website I offer Coupons, and in the video I put that as a text, you can see an example of my video here : youtube . com/ watch?v=zxugePT0ty4

plus a link which directs people offsite to your sales page may violate YouTube's Terms of use. Note the following statement from their policies at:

"If the main purpose of your content is to drive people off of YouTube and onto another site, it will likely violate our spam policies."

Most people see videos whose main end purpose is to sell them something as "video spam". What are you actually trying to do with your YouTube channel? If it is merely a vehicle for a sales scheme, you may be better off finding another method.

Ofcourse my goal is to redirect the visitor to my website, BUT the content of the videos actually help the visitor and contain good informations and is not a spam since it gives multiple methods even free ones without the need to visit my website. So I think I am not violating the Terms of use.

 

[UKHypnotist]

Ok I see what you are trying to do.

However, I am not sure you can just take a video created with the YouTube Editor and upload it someplace like say...Dailymotion. I've never heard of this being done in spite of the fact that you are able to download videos you have created and or uploaded to your YouTube channel. You can embed to your own website, of course. If you had simply stated you were creating videos using the YouTube Editor, I might not have gotten confused. Try a Google search on whether or not it is legal to do this.

(Sorry my husband came in and interrupted; I hit the post button before I was finished.)

 

[imbelhassen]

Ok I see what you are trying to do.

However, I am not sure you can just take a video created with the YouTube Editor and upload it someplace like say...Dailymotion.

So is this the only issue ? is everything else legal and allowed ?

I tried to put this question in "YouTube Help Forum" but I didn't get any answer for days, is there an official youtube support service that I can ask ?

 

[UKHypnotist]

Yes but again it will take days. In your channel Dashboard, right at the bottom, there is a Help and Feedback link you can use to email YouTube Support. Last time I used it, I got a reply in about 3 business days.

 

[GeekyNet]

You can use whatever you want from a Creative Commons video. In fact, you can download a CC video and upload it to your own channel with no edits, without any legal problems.

Creative Commons licenses let any person use your video, for any reason, and there's no limit on it.

I just did some Googling and that's the info I found.

 

[UKHypnotist]

You can use whatever you want from a Creative Commons video. In fact, you can download a CC video and upload it to your own channel with no edits, without any legal problems.

Creative Commons licenses let any person use your video, for any reason, and there's no limit on it.

I just did some Googling and that's the info I found.

I'm very sorry, @GeekyNet, but you are wrong. There are at least 4 levels of Creative Commons License, and each one has different permissions attached to it. I think everyone here who intends to attempt to respond to this thread should go to the official Creative Commons website, and read about the different types of CC license available before doing so. Site is linked below.

https://creativecommons.org/