These are not good times to be an amateur AMV editor... -_-'
I am fed up with Youtube and these damn copyright spazz-freaks.
A fan of mine on Youtube wanted to see my "Vexen Wants Xemnas' Girl!" video, which is currently muted, and suggested that I try uploading it on another video site. I saw it as a good opportunity to try to find a new place where my muted/blocked AMVs could find a home, so I gave two websites a shot. First was livevideo.com. I'd found out about the site last year, seeing a couple of Youtube AMV editors that I knew there, so I thought that maybe it'd be a good place. I set up an account, uploaded the video (which I'd copyed to a flash drive for just this purpose), and waited. Thankfully it didn't take too long to upload; the file size of it was fairly small. They let you view it after you upload it, before they approve it, so I got to watch some of it. The sound quality was MUCH improved over the Youtube version of it (which was BUTCHERED). That morning I was able to send it over Windows Live Messenger to a newer friend of mine who lives in England, who enjoyed the Vexen madness.
I messaged the link to the fanling in question, and I later went to bed.
When I got on the compy that night, she'd messaged me back, saying that the video wasn't there anymore. I checked, and low and behold, it was gone. Deleted by the moderator, it said. No email notification.
So, the next night - last night - I decided to try veoh.com, since I'd heard that's where some of Youtube's exiled AMV editors have gone. I uploaded it there, and shortly after, I couldn't find it. I was like, wtf? until I checked my email. "Important information about your account". They'd already found out that it contained copyrighted material - I'm assuming that it was the song - and taken it down, and threatened that if I kept posting copyrighted material on the site, they'd terminate my account there.
The song that's so forbidden to be posted online?
"Jessie's Girl" by Rick Springfield.
Seriously.
I ended up just uploading the video to sendspace and sending the link to her. She was happy to receive it, so that made me feel good, at least.
So, now I'm only left with two options now for my exiled AMVs: One, starting an account at animemusicvideos.org. I'll probably do this, but I didn't want to start out my account with a silly parody AMV. I LOVE "Vexen Wants Xenmas' Girl!", but on a professional site like that, I'd prefer to start out with one of my more complex, serious AMVs, like "Congratulations" (one of my fav AkuRoku AMVs that I've made) or "Eva" (the Kairi tribute-ish AMV I made for my bestie's birthday last year, which unfortunately was muted by Youtube sometime recently U.U). Two, if, for whatever reason, animemusicvideos.org rejects my AMVs too, I'd upload them to filefront or mediafire, and put the links to them on my Youtube page, or give them out upon request (the second one's probably the smarter way to go >.>'). It'd be better than sendspace, since sendspace links can expire if left idle for about two weeks or so, if you don't have a paid account with them. I still don't really trust giving out the files of my AMVs to random strangers, since they could ty to repost them somewhere an claim them as their own...but, actually, that probably wouldn't happen, because those vids would be taken down anyway because they're apparently forbidden everywhere! :D
*sigh* -_-
I just don't get it. Yeah, I know that Youtube has been particularly asshole-ish lately, that they've insituted this scanning system that mutes/blocks ANY video that contains audio content owned by Warner Music Group (see here: http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/04/testing-youtubes-aud ). But WHY are other video sites going along with this?
Because Warner has more money, I suppose. -_-'
But still, I DON'T get why they seemed to target this particular video so much. On Youtube, it was first tagged as being a copyrighted vid, and ads were put on it. Then, months later, it was blocked entirely. Now, only through my fanling's message, I learned that it was put back up, but muted. (or maybe I knew that before...I don't know, this shit gets so confusing >.<) And the two other video sites I tried to put it up on both deleted it within 24 hours of my posting it. If it's Rick Springfield's will, then dude, you had your time in music history, and more than likely that time will NOT come again, so just chill and reflect on your former fame and your current riches, will ya?
Is it because it's GAY? (in the literal, homosexual sense of the word) Because in the case of Youtube at least, I'm slightly suspecting that. I bet somebody watched that thing and went "oh no, we can't have something like THAT attached to Rick Springfield's name" and took it down. Well guess what? It doesn't freaking matter, gay or straight. It was FUNNY. And if homophobes can't see that, then screw them.
And if it's the Warner Music Group's fault, which it probably is, then guess what, guys? Fuck you. I am seriously considering boycotting you spazzes. This isn't just affecting people like me, it's affecting people who've made valid, fair-use parodies involving that material. Protecting the creative properties of the artists and songwriters is all fine and good, but this has gone too far. This is encroaching on our free-speech rights, and that is wrong. If money's want you want, you're not getting any of mine. Screw you.
*sigh* I miss the old days of Youtube... U.U
EDIT/UPDATE: It actually WASN'T "Jessie's Girl" that caused all this
I think it was "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by Tears for Fears, in the credits.
One of my favorite 80's songs U.U