Can I make a sports compilation on Youtube using clips from various broadcasts?

Question

I would like to create a "Top 10"-style compilation of clips from a sports event that I particularly enjoyed watching some weeks ago.

Since there are literally thousands of content creators on Youtube who publish such highlight reels on a regular basis, without any mention of permission from the broadcasters, I thought I could do it as well.

However, it slipped into my mind that doing so would not necessarily be "fair use" legally speaking as I am neither criticizing nor educating anyone, nor is it for purely "personal" use. On the other hand, such a compilation has a "journalistic" nature, i.e., it shows the best moments from a match, or the worst fails from an event.

Am I committing copyright infringement by uploading a sports compilation on youtube?

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If the answer to the above question is "yes", can someone explain to me how those thousands of compilation content creators get away with their videos, even as they're monetizing them?

Answer 1

Unfortunately, the "but everyone does that" (BEDT) argument doesn't hold water as evidenced by prosecutions of looters.

Would uploading this video be a copyright infringement?

It would be hard to answer this part of the question without knowing where and from whom the clips had come from.

• If the clips came from a company like ESPN or a YouTuber that doesn't give you permission to be able to use their clips then yes this might be a copyright infringement.

• If you use video/clips that are labeled as creative commons then nt it wouldn't be an infringement. YouTube has a feature for this.

Would my actions be fair use?

First, we'll need to understand what fair-use is. Fair use is the ability to use copyright material under certain circumstances without permission. To best determine if using copyright-protected material in your work you should weigh it against the four factors of fair use.

1. The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;

2. The nature of the copyrighted work;

3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole;

4. The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

More information about fair-use here

Youtube outlines their fair use guidelines here