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The shock is real. "YouTube will be deleted," said the twelve-year-old. This sound is as hopeless as if someone had turned off Wi-Fi forever. For a 12-year-old, YouTube is synonymous with the Internet. So you can find everything you need, especially the funny, intelligent creators who broadcast the best music. All will no longer exist: the two 22-year-old German students, Simon Difabachew and Felix Härlen, claim that they released a video titled "Why YouTube Disappears Next Year". This film has been watched over three million times and is currently causing widespread horror in German speaking children's rooms.
"Take our freedom"
Referring to the proposal for a European Copyright Directive, currently being negotiated between the European Parliament and national governments, the two creators make questionable allegations. For example: "Before YouTube and the Internet existed, people could not easily broadcast their own opinions in public." Or these: "If we go back to that, then the opinion will only be rendered, as before, by powerful individuals." conclude with a shrill cry: "Then our freedom would be removed."
The truth of these claims is weak, but their impact on social media is great: the fear of young users because of the alleged attack of the EU on YouTube in particular and on the Internet in general. For representatives of EU institutions, six months before the European elections in May 2019, this scenario is not refreshing. Because this time, you want to specifically encourage the youngest European citizens to exercise their right to vote. The European Parliament has launched a campaign under the slogan "This time, I vote", which specifically targets young people.
Article 13
The facts are presented with simplicity: Article 13 of the aforementioned Directive, which aims to adapt European copyright legislation to digital conditions, provides that platforms such as YouTube, Facebook or Twitter must obtain licensees of copyright owners and be responsible for copyright infringement by users. Say: If, for example, video bloggers deduce their movies with songs, the corresponding rights must be acquired legally. This is to ensure that musicians, writers and filmmakers participate in the profits generated on the Internet. Videos not using foreign bodies (such as cooking tips or craft manuals) are not concerned. "Article 13 is essentially about ensuring that the existing commandments are well respected," a spokeswoman for the Austrian Presidency, in charge of negotiating with Parliament, told the press.
This new obligation to guarantee copyright protection even before publication is a hindrance for Internet companies. Because it makes the core of their business model heavier to sell online advertising in addition to free content.
Here is the source of the wave of revolt. Two weeks ago, Susan Wojcicki, general manager of Google Group on YouTube, warned users that article 13 was threatening "the ability of millions of people to download content on platforms." "Hundreds of thousands of jobs are under threat, but more" a few large companies "would be able to publish online.
"It's just about anything"
These allegations have probably prompted many creators to close their chains in protest or caution: it also feeds the problems of the nursery. Brussels has little patience for the allegations: "Anyone who uses this legislative process to argue that the European Union wants to destroy the Internet is nonsense," said Commission spokesman Jean-Claude Juncker on Tuesday.
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