I'm going to post this, lock the topic, and then I'm going to remove this entire post from the forum in a day or two because in case anyone actually thinks this is a good idea, I want them to be able to read and see that no it is not and we will not discuss it any further.
Avatar Music Video are in a legal grey area. Some debate they fall under fair use, others say they do not. We do
NOT own the Avatar. We do
NOT own the music (with the exception of very rare occasions where your band makes a song in your mom's garage and you put it to Avatar)? We do
NOT make money off our AMVs. One of the only reasons people believe they fall under fair use in that lovely legal grey area is because
we do not make money off of our AMVs.Yes, some cons award small monetary prizes for their awards. Those cons are few and far between as most who host industry guests don't want to openly advertise that their giving out money for AMVs. Even the Org is 100% nonprofit with all donations going towards enhancing the website and maintaining server space for free uploads.
If it was actually possible to make money off of AMVs, do you honestly think you're the first person ever to come up with the idea? Why hasn't Ileia, Chiikaboom, or Nostromo jumped on the bandwagon? Because THEY DO NOT OWN THEIR SOURCE MATERIAL. This is why AMVs on Youtube are constantly receiving copyright claims and take downs. Because if you don't own something and you go around showing it off, eventually the guy that does own it is going to come along and say "Hey, that's mine."
You may have monetization for the moment, I've seen others who have pulled it off, but it won't stay that way and you better hope that they don't take legal recourse once they see what you're up to because they'll have every right in the world. Even we can not host certain videos
due to legal matters.You've already run xstylus around in the Avatar Expo thread but he isn't part of the administration and it's time for someone to put their foot down. This website has existed for
over 10 years so if there was a way to make money off your AMVs (which again, there
isn't and we do NOT promote it) we would have heard/posted something about it.
Consider this an official warning. If you continue to try and force the subject matter then there will be actions taken. If you wish to speak to me in private then you're welcome to do so, but this discussion is over.
Edit: Side note but the "partnership" that was flaunted is not real.
http://socialblade.com/youtube/user/Chemix800A helpful member notified me in private:
"All that partner applied thing on youtube is, is a form of identity proof that grants you some extra features and adds your mobile phone as another layer of security for your account, has nothing to do with youtube networks."
So those of you that think he's on to something, well, he's not.