When it comes to creating videos, there are a lot of important factors that will determine if they will be successful or not. Some of these include video quality, what type of content is being shown, and arguably the most important, the music that you use. However, YouTube has a strict rule on what music you are allowed to use in your videos, if you use the wrong music your video could be hit with a copyright strike.
Yes, YouTube created the whole audio library for creators to have safe, free music to use in their videos. Within the audio library, there are over 600 songs and sound effects available to any creator to place within their videos. All of these audios are safe to use without infringement.
The audio library is a great resource for any creators to help take their videos to a high level through the vast collection of music available along with a large selection of sound effects for creators to use as well. However, there are also other libraries with music that creators can use and still follow YouTube’s music rules and avoid any copyright strikes.
How to Access the Audio Library
In order to find the YouTube audio library, first, you have to make sure you have a google account that you can use on YouTube. If not, click the bubble in the top right and then create an account to use. After this you will want to have the options tab on the left-hand side of the screen open so that you can see things like; library, history, your videos, etc.
Then click on the option, Your Videos to get to the YouTube Creator Studios tab. From here you will see a lot more options available to you on the left-hand side of the screen. Looking down these options on the left-hand side, near the bottom you should see the Audio Library option. After that, you will be in the audio library and can easily listen to the music and sound effects available.
YouTube’s Music Rules
To best prevent any copyright claims from movie studios and music producers, YouTube has a strict set of copyright rules that every creator must follow. The first part of YouTubes Copyright and Fair Use Policy states, “Creators should only upload videos that they have made or that they’re authorized to use. That means they should not upload videos they didn’t make, or use content in their videos that someone else owns the copyright to, such as music tracks, snippets of copyrighted programs, or videos made by other users, without necessary authorizations.”
The simplest way that YouTube enforces copyright policies is through its Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). This is a form that is available to anyone, so that way when copyrighted content is found it can easily be reported and then any punishment that follows can be enforced.
YouTube also has a Copyright Match Tool that will scan thousands of channels and ensure that no copyright material is found on them. If the matching tool does encounter any content like this, it will notify the original creator so that they can take action in whatever way they want.
The original creator upon receiving this notice has three main options available through YouTube. the first is to Archive the match, this means that nothing will be done about it in the time being but the creator can readdress the match at a later time. They can also request the removal of the video, and the last option is to contact the channel that was flagged for the match and an email will be sent to them.
YouTube’s Copyright Strike Punishments
Depending on what type of copyright claim was made against your video, the actions that YouTube will take against the video will differ. If the copyright claim comes from the Copyright Match Tool then the action that will be taken is purely up to the original content creator. This means that you could get an email from the creator simply asking to receive part of the revenue earned from the video or you could be asked that the video be taken down.
However, if the copyright is submitted through a DMCA then YouTube will take greater action against that video and creator. According to YouTube, “we take down that video and apply a copyright strike. If a user gets three copyright strikes in 90 days, their account, along with any associated channels, will be terminated.”
There are tools available for creators to resolve different copyright claims, but the main thing that channels have to do is simply wait for the 90 days to expire and the claim will no longer apply. Other tools that YouTube makes available for creators who have received a copyright claim through DMCA’s are the ability to request a retraction of the claim, and also a counter-notification.
When a retraction of a claim is submitted, the video will become available to the public again and the claim will no longer act against the creator. If a creator believes that the claim against the content is an error they can submit a counter-notification which is a request for YouTube to reinstate the video and remove the original claim against it.
How to Find More Copyright Safe Music
While YouTube does offer a wide variety of music that you can use in your videos from their audio library, what if you want to use some other music? There are several other major sites that also offer music that you can use in your videos.
The first site is Artlist.io, where for roughly $10 a month, you get access to their vast bank of free songs, sound effects, and even footage as well. With this monthly subscription, you get access to the music and are allowed to use it in any form of video for any social media app.
The next option that many creators use is AudioJungle.net where you can search their vast amounts of music until you find the type of song that you want. You can then purchase that song and are then able to use that in the future at any time you want for any of your videos.
