Transparency Report

YouTube Copyright Transparency Report

Everyone Has Access

YouTube has built a suite of Copyright Management tools for all rightsholders and matches them with the appropriate tool based on the scale of their copyrighted work on YouTube and the resources they have dedicated to operate the tools.

Key points

Webform: Between July 2023 and December 2023, over 60% of claimants who claimed or requested removal of content through YouTube's Copyright Management Suite did so through the copyright webform, which is designed to be an easy option for those with infrequent needs.

Copyright Match Tool: As of December 2023, over 3 million channels have access to the Copyright Match Tool, which we built for those with more frequent copyright needs. It automatically identifies videos that are matches or potential matches of a user's content. Anybody with a YouTube account who is in the YouTube Partner Program or has submitted a valid copyright takedown notice is eligible for Copyright Match Tool access.

Content ID: Content ID is for enterprise partners (such as movie studios, record labels, and collecting societies) and service providers who operate at an entirely different scale — over 7,700 partners had access between July 2023 and December 2023 and many have a dedicated team just to operate the tool. The scale of copyright needs for these partners is in a class all by itself, and their content — today's hit song, scenes from a new movie or the latest viral video — is at the heart of creative reuse on YouTube. Claims from Content ID partners represent over 99% of all copyright actions on YouTube.

A note on terminology: In this report, we distinguish between tools to submit removal requests (webform and Copyright Match Tool) and Content ID, which places a claim on a video. 'Claim' will always refer to Content ID actions, whereas 'removal request' will refer to the webform and Copyright Match Tool.

Eligibility and access

Every logged-in YouTube user has access to the webform, which we built to be a streamlined and efficient way to submit removal requests. YouTube has invested considerable resources into making the webform easy to use and effective for the vast majority of use cases.

We automatically offer Copyright Match Tool access to channels in the YouTube Partner Program. For these channels, the tool finds potential matches of their uploads to YouTube. In addition, anyone who submits valid copyright removal requests through our webform has access. For these cases, the tool detects and surfaces potential matches of videos removed by the rightsholder. Rightsholders can also apply for all copyright tools via YouTube's Copyright Management tools application. The eligibility criteria for each copyright management tool is described in YouTube's Help Center.

A history of sending YouTube complete and valid copyright removal requests to remove allegedly infringing content serves as the primary indicator that an applicant both needs scaled tools and understands copyright. Abuse of our webform, or otherwise invalid use due to a lack of understanding about copyright, is very common.

When YouTube responds to an applicant who completes YouTube’s Copyright Management tools application, YouTube always explains the tools available to a given applicant. We also indicate that if the applicant believes they should be eligible for additional tools, they are welcome to apply again in 90 days. In the interim, the best course of action for any rightsholder is to make use of the tools they already have access to. This demonstrates both that they do have a need that is better addressed by a more scaled tool, and that they understand copyright removal processes. If an applicant wishes to appeal the initial decision and provide additional information for us to consider, they may respond directly to the email.

Access and usage of copyright tools

The following data demonstrates the relationship between how many rightsholders have access to a particular tool, how many use that tool, and the scale of their need to manage their copyright on YouTube. We match rightsholders to the tool that best meets their needs, based in part on how much content on YouTube is subject to their copyright. The webform is available to everyone and is used by more people than any other tool.

Those in the YouTube Partner Program, and those who have used our webform successfully, also have access to the Copyright Match Tool, and thus have the benefit of the most requested feature of Content ID — the ability to automatically detect potentially infringing content. This feature helps users better detect and manage their copyright through a user-friendly interface.

Content ID partners are managing content at an entirely different scale and sophistication. Though they represent the smallest number of users for any of our tools, their actions represent over 99% of all copyright actions on YouTube. This is because their content — today’s hit song, scenes from a new movie, or the latest viral video — is at the heart of creative reuse on YouTube and is the most likely to be reuploaded. To keep the ecosystem safe, we regularly evaluate partners' access to CID to ensure they demonstrate an ongoing need for scaled rights management. In some cases, these evaluations may result in removing a partner’s access to Content ID and matching them with a more appropriate copyright management tool.

Exhibit 1.1 – Access and usage of copyright tools

TypeUsers with accessUsers that used tool
WebformBillions169,424
Copyright Match Tool3,100,33598,503
Content ID7,7914,511
Enterprise Webform8,5112,064

This table shows the number of users who have access to each tool as of December 2023, along with how many used the tool between July 2023 and December 2023.

In some cases, an individual may make copyright removal requests or make claims using multiple tools (for example, if they are granted access to Copyright Match Tool after making successful copyright removal requests via the webform). In these cases, they are counted as users of both tools.

Exhibit 1.2 – Copyright actions by tool

99.30%
TypeAmount
Webform1,527,846
Copyright Match Tool2,222,304
Content ID1,016,137,305
Enterprise Webform3,390,191
circle

Webform: 1,527,846 (0.15%)

circle

Copyright Match Tool: 2,222,304 (0.22%)

circle

Content ID: 1,016,137,305 (99.30%)

circle

Enterprise Webform: 3,390,191 (0.33%)

This chart shows the number of unique claims and copyright removal requests made between July 2023 and December 2023. Note that a video may be subject to multiple claims or removal requests, such as when it features more than one copyrighted asset or when multiple parties share ownership of copyrighted assets.

A Content ID claim can convert to a copyright removal request at the claimant's request. In these cases, we have counted them as two separate actions: one Content ID claim and one copyright removal request.

Learn more at How YouTube Works

Data Collection Note:
All data in this report is collected between July 2023 through December 2023, unless otherwise annotated as below:

† Data collected as a 'snapshot' in April 2024. Some data, like rate of counter notifications and Content ID disputes, look at "trailing" events. We start with the set of claims or removals made during H2 2023, but disputes and counter notifications continue to accrue after that period because they can be made at any time. For instance, a claim made on November 30, 2023 may have a dispute made on April 1, 2024. For these data points, we have chosen to take a snapshot 3 months after the end of H2 2023.

For previous versions of this report covering Jan 1, 2021 through Dec, 31 2022, refer to the PDF Download Center.