DCMA is why YouTube strikes your content, and every creator needs to understand it

This story was originally published on Passionfruit.

At one point or another, every online creator will face the consequences of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. This well-meaning law passed in 1998 was meant to protect copyright holders in the face of an expanding internet. Today the DMCA process is the basis for the rules we follow for using copyrighted material on platforms like YouTube and Twitch. 

Thanks to community guidelines, your chances of ever getting a DMCA takedown personally are pretty slim. But that doesn’t mean the DMCA process isn’t going to impact you or the content you create. Before you upload any copyrighted content, even if it’s fair use, sit back and learn about the DMCA. 

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