Monetizing Videos and Using Copyright Music on YouTube

D

DDirector

Veteran
I am new to YouTube and cant monetize my video yet but wondering.

Is monetization really worth it?
Some videos I create may contain copyright music (because it fits the video better) I would double check to see if the song is allowed first.

Two questions:
Is monetization really worth it? Can you make a decent money from it?
If I end up using copyright music and start monetization, wouldnt I end up loosing opportunities to make money?

Should I continue using copyright-free music or should I just choose the song that I think fits the video best and not worry about it (now or later)
 
Using copyrighted music without the holder's permission will NEVER be the best strategy. Once you come from this perspective you will make decisions based upon the other ways that are available to you. You have the choice of getting original music created for your project or buying royalty free music. Yes, it has to be this blunt because there is no grey area in the laws.

I do not know if monetization is worth it though. I have always wondered how much one really can make? To me, it seems like a great marketing ploy for YouTube while giving out table scraps to the content creators. But that is just a cynical guess. Hopefully others will chime in with more info.
 
DDirector said:
Is monetization really worth it? Can you make a decent money from it?
Click to expand...
Depends on the number of views. A million views will give you $1000 (or more if you become a popular channel).

DDirector said:
If I end up using copyright music and start monetization, wouldnt I end up loosing opportunities to make money?
Should I continue using copyright-free music or should I just choose the song that I think fits the video best and not worry about it (now or later)
Click to expand...
It depends, if you upload a video with copyrighted material you won't be able to monetize at all unless you have an agreement with the copyright holder.
The only exception is if you upload cover music, assuming you have the copyright over the recording you nay be able to share the monetization proceeds with the song and test writer.
 
A million views will yield $1000. Is this in a set time period? If one had 1 million views per day, would that equal $1,000 per day?
 
It's harder to make money on YouTube now then it was 3-4-5 years ago, which was the golden-age many think.

Popular YouTubers were making millions of dollars per year but they also had millions of followers (and other ventures which brought success from their YouTube career).

The content and timing for some was just right...they blew up to the top.

A camera channel (or something niche) will never make the same money as an entertainment channel. If your target audience is 15-25, most of them will subscribe and watch everything (this decreases with age), follow all of your social media accounts (helping with your growth & exposure), and buy your merchandise (yes, it's a real thing; all Popular YouTubers have legit clothing companies), etc.

What usually starts off as a fun way to create content (especially vlogging), can quickly turn into a business for many as it opens up doors for brand deals/sponsorships as well. Once you become a "YouTube Celebrity" you may start doing commercials, going on tours, etc.

This is of course when you're at the top-of-the-top...you can still probably make some side dough worth the time with a few hundred thousand subscribers for a channel that's only growing.
 
Also, on a side note, YouTube is a very wild beast. It's where 'viral videos' were born and there is always the chance of success with just one hit.

Logan Paul - who is now known by many by his controversial coverage earlier this year - may or may not have ruined his movie career and lost tons of other money on the side, but his fans were still insanely loyal to him.

Even just one silly idea can continue to make you so much money (created after he returned to YouTube and it wasn't the first thing back...about a month after):

(NSFW) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrdOKiBD1FE
 
Unless you can get to 1000 subscribers with a certain amount of viewing hours, your hopes of monetizing are zero. You can try setting up a Patreon account and hope that it gives you enough money to afford to grow, but that's about the best you can do until you hit that magic number. You also need to have an ad words account set up long before you reach that level because it can take time to get everything connected. So now you are spending money advertising when you haven't started making a dime.

As far as copyrighted music goes, some owners will monetize your entire video, some will cause a copyright strike. Some strikes result in immediate 6 month suspension, some require multiple strikes before suspension. Some channels get away with short clips of music (30 seconds or less), some don't.

Also, rights in Canada may be different than rights in the USA. But that means your videos will only be visible in countries where the content is legal.

In short, there is no easy answer. The best advice is use music from the Youtube library and obey the licensing parameters of the creator which should be in the description of the song.
 
I got a notice last year that they were taking monetization AWAY (or maybe just rejecting it...after five or six years???) because the content wasnt “advertiser friendly” which I assume means safe like a bunny, completely innocuous and inoffensive to anyone. Another thing to keep in mind.
 
Ive been considering it.

I started using copyright free music but i cant always find the songs that suit the video.
But Ive also been seeing a lot of youtubers I follow using copyrighted music without a problem.
Maybe they wont get paid for the videos, but honestly does that really matter?

I would for sure check if its allowed, as I know ads will play.
And making sure it will play for all or the majority of countries.
 
"Everybody else is doing it" is not a good reason to do it too.

As someone above said - the law is not grey here. It's just that people continue to flaunt it to. As content creators ourselves, we should be the #1 advocates of not breaching copyright.

If, as you say, you're having trouble finding songs that suit your edits, you're likely either a) using FREE music rather than ROYALTY-FREE or LICENSED production music, of which there is a plenty, at varying quality and price levels; or b) inflexible with your editing and creativity. If an idea depends too heavily on having a certain song, then the idea is not original enough. Likewise if your business model depends upon breaching other peoples copyright because you cannot afford to license music, then your business model is not sound (and yes, the law applies even if it is just a hobby, and you need to find a hobby that is not illegal).

Having said all that there are certain exceptions which will allow you to use other copyrighted works in part - such as for reviews or parody - but these very from region to region, and online it becomes increasingly difficult to ensure you're following the protocols for all the applicable jurisdictions.
 
If you monetize on Youtube and do not have usage rights to the music you are in for a lot of trouble. Why not just pay for the music license that allows for monetization. I use Jamendo, audiojungle and audionetwork for music. Both have a large music library and rates are reasonable.
 
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Go here, search the song you want to use, be prepared for it to say you are not allowed or blocked in XXX number of countries:

https://www.youtube.com/music_policies

I would consider this search tool to be incomplete as it simply may not have info on the specific song/artist at the time. I tried a few searches of titles I knew, and it several cases it pulled up the live performance versions (blocked in 247 countries as one example), but did not pull up the studio version. Since the notes and words are roughly the same, I would expect a copyright issue from using the studio version as well as the listed live versions. Example, type in "Paint it Black" by the Rolling Stones, several covers of this say you can use it, but I find that hard to believe. Also "Red Barchetta" by Rush, you'll notice that no studio album is listed as being allowed or prohibited, does this mean you can use the studio versions? Of course not, the list in incomplete and it may take a long time for someone to find it and report it.

See this also:
https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/6013276?hl=en

I would also recommend spending a bunch of time with the free courses that Youtube offers, specifically the ones about content use and copyright https://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/welcome While not an all encompassing wealth of knowledge, and certainly not a legal councilor, it will give you a decent idea of what you may and may not do.
 
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