Embedding Youtube Videos on a commercial site

Legal issues about embedding videos from Youtube on a commercial website

[Killah]

This is a question about the Youtube Copyright Licenses.
If I run a commercial website (community, income via ads and cooperations), I am required to get in touch with Youtube about every video that I want to embed into my site.
Even though it's allowed by the uploader to embed the video into other websites.

So there is a video section on the website with many subpages, one for each embedded youtube video. There will be a self written description and title for the video and the embedded video isetf so it can be watched on this page.

How is the legal situation and common practice about this?

[Leosghost]

The uploader owns them ( and their copyright )..so they can embed them where they want to..
You do not own them ( and do not own their copyright )..so you cannot use them, or embed them..legally...anywhere..whether your site is commercial or not..

[Killah]

So if I contact the copyright owner of the video and ask him if he allows me to embed the youtube video he uploaded on my domain and he agrees (in written form), I am allowed to embed all his Youtube videos? Or is there another copyright/usage issue between Youtube and me?

[not2easy]

There are different restrictions on embedding, depending on where your site is doing business. I can only access the US rules, where there is no objection to embedding so long as the site has "adequate" related content and is not using the videos to generate income. AdSense is best left off pages where YouTube videos are embedded unless the video is a minor feature of the page's content.

A quote from the (Global) policy: [youtube.com...]

You agree not to use the Service for any of the following commercial uses unless you obtain YouTube's prior written approval:

the sale of access to the Service;
the sale of advertising, sponsorships, or promotions placed on or within the Service or Content; or
the sale of advertising, sponsorships, or promotions on any page of an ad-enabled blog or website containing Content delivered via the Service, unless other material not obtained from YouTube appears on the same page and is of sufficient value to be the basis for such sales.

[Leosghost]

The original copyright owner's permission trumps Youtube TOS, whevever in the world you are, and whatever Youtube via their "shrinkwrap" TOS ..thinks that they can impose on the uploader..
So..if you get the owner's permission in writing, you are good to go, but, you don't and just do what Youtube think that they are able to say via their TOS that you can do..and the original owner ( and / or their lawyers can come after you and chew you a new one, at which point Youtube are not going to come to your defence )..original owners cannot sign away their copyright by using a site with "shrinkwrap" TOS and clicking that they "agree", whatever Youtube might want you and original copyright owners, and anyone else to believe..

Youtube are not alone in this..Flickr ( owned by Yahoo ) and a whole host of other U.S.A corps attempt to pull the same legal smoke and mirrors over uploaded imagery and copyright..none ever of them back up legally ( ie pay the lawyers fees etc ) the people who take and use images and videos that are "found "there, or "embeded from there" when the original copyright owners go after the end of line infringers..

Ever gets to court..the big guys claim "safe harbor" ..and leave the little guys who thought they had permission because of the big guy's TOS..hanging out to dry in front of the judge..

[not2easy]

True, the owner is the owner. Use of Youtube is a separate matter. I was addressing that part of the question.

Youtube allows the owner to disable embedding/Sharing so that option is not available via YouTube. Doesn't mean it can't be done, but it does mean YouTube won't deliver content for those videos if the origin is not YouTube at the owner's URL. Permissions belong to the owner. If the site in question violates the YouTube Terms and you have permission from the owner to use it, you may need to host it on your site. As YouTube Terms do not trump the owner's copyright, permission from the owner does not trump Youtube's Terms.