YouTube issues a statement to “Let’s Play” Content Creators

“Let’s Play” videos have become quite popular over the last few years. For whatever reasons that push fans to YouTube to watch other people play games, the sheer number of views on popular “Let’s Play” channels is mind blowing. Recently, when Nintendo took aim at players using Nintendo games to create these videos, it came as a reminder that buying a game doesn’t confer the right to monetize on the copyrighted works.

YouTube recently issued a statement to Let’s Play video makers, reminding them to get permission before publication of these gaming videos.

“As always, you should ensure that you have all the necessary rights to commercially use all content in a video before you submit it for monetization,” said a statement on YouTube Google + page. “Video game content may be monetized depending on the commercial use rights granted to you by licensees of video game publishers.”

The point is, YouTube wants these video makers to make sure they get written permission before making videos. “A final reminder. Simply buying or playing a video game does not grant you the copyright or permission to monetize. To earn revenue from videos from the game, you need commercial rights.”