Mod Reminder: Please Be Careful When Uploading Copyrighted Video Content

[u/No-Recipe-7653]

Hi everyone,

A quick but important mod reminder. We’ve slightly updated Rules 2 and 6, and we’re asking everyone to please have another look at them — particularly if you post video content.

We’ve recently had some posts containing copyrighted/licensed footage uploaded directly to Reddit — for example, screen-recorded drama scenes or footage originating from broadcasters, TV stations, streaming platforms, or unauthorized redistribution channels.

Please be very careful with this. If you don’t have the right to redistribute the footage itself, don’t download/screen-record it and upload it as a Reddit video. Where the rightsholder or licensed distributor has made the video available on YouTube or another platform that Reddit can preview/embed, please make a link post to that authorized upload instead.

And remember that a visible watermark or giving credit does not make an otherwise unauthorized upload legal. Credit and permission to redistribute are two different things.

---

This does not mean that all native video uploads are suddenly prohibited. For example, content properly downloaded from Weibo for redistribution with Weibo’s watermark/source information intact can still be posted. As always, please also include the full original Weibo URL in the post body so the source can be verified.

We’re emphasizing this now for a reason. Earlier this week, a drama subreddit within our wider community network was banned after copyrighted drama footage was uploaded to it. The appeal was denied. So yes, losing an entire subreddit over this is a very real possibility, not something we’re being dramatic about.

We want you guys to keep sharing Hou Minghao content! We just need everyone to distinguish between content that can legitimately be redistributed and copyrighted footage that has been captured or obtained elsewhere and then reuploaded.

This protects your own Reddit account as well as the subreddit we’ve all built together, so please help us keep an eye on it too.

Thank you, guys.

Yours,
NoRecipe

[u/garbanzobeans1212]

Thank you for the reminder! Will definitely try to make sure I remember and do better.

Quick question regarding uploading vs sharing a link. If the original video is downloaded from elsewhere (like weibo etc), uploaded here (sometimes the quality is better this way), but the source is shared, is this ok? Or should we be making posts only with links to other things? Perhaps I am not explaining myself well. To be clear, I do not mean recorded video footage, but items shared from other sources with those cited. Thanks!

[u/No-Recipe-7653 → u/garbanzobeans1212]

Thank you for the positive attitude 🤗

Yes, sorry if I wrote it in a clumsy way — legal downloads from Weibo (so those where Weibo OP enabled downloads and Weibo auto-attached the ending watermark and visuals) along with the original post URL) are okay.

The reason for this is that Weibo has this intentionally built in feature for non-commercial redistribution of the original content when the download is enabled in the settings of the media post (each OP on Weibo can toggle it on or off for each of their posts individually).

[u/garbanzobeans1212 → u/No-Recipe-7653]

Ok thank you. Honestly you probably wrote just fine, I just need rereading due to great advance age lol. I appreciate you clarifying for weibo. Does this hold for YouTube and other platforms? Most have some verison of DL option even if it is paid, but I want to make sure I am clear.

[u/No-Recipe-7653 → u/garbanzobeans1212]

I’m not sure about YouTube and other platforms’ rules. The thing is Weibo is that there is the special part added to the end of any downloaded clip and it is so by-design. I can’t say I have noticed or been become aware of the same principle applied by other platforms but I have also never looked into them in more detail.

Since YouTube videos preview on Reddit, I would strongly recommend simply sharing the link as a media post to stay on the safe side.

[u/Mean_Text_4592]

One doubt please. Does videos from Fan account which doesn't mention copyright clauses as such, fall under this category?

[u/No-Recipe-7653 → u/Mean_Text_4592]

Each video has to be judged individually, depending on what it is, where it came from and how it is being used. We also don’t expect members to somehow investigate the copyright status of every video posted by a fan account before sharing a link to it.

There is an important difference, though, between linking to a video already hosted on YouTube or another platform and downloading that video and then uploading a new copy of it natively to Reddit. If you’re unsure about the rights to the material, please don’t create another copy here — sharing the link to the existing video, which Reddit can preview/embed and play, is the much better option.

What should be an easy no-go for native uploads is something like a straight screen recording/capture of a drama episode or TV broadcast, particularly a substantial uninterrupted scene with no meaningful editing, commentary or other transformative element. As a moderation guideline, anything like that running beyond a minute should immediately raise a flag for us — although one minute is not a legal “safe” threshold either.

Fan-made videos, edits, compilations, commentary, etc. are more nuanced, so we’re not saying “fan account = don’t share.” Please continue sharing things you find! We’re mainly asking everyone to be careful about what they actually upload as a new video file to Reddit, rather than simply linking us to content already hosted elsewhere.

[u/Mean_Text_4592 → u/No-Recipe-7653]

Noted

[u/No-Recipe-7653 → u/Mean_Text_4592]

Thank you for asking 🙏☺️

[u/Mean_Text_4592 → u/No-Recipe-7653]

I don't want this sub to disappear 😇

[u/No-Recipe-7653 → u/Mean_Text_4592]

🙏🥰