YouTube has a feature that removes unlicensed music from videos while leaving in other audio. Though apparently not well-thought of in the past, it's been upgraded with a new AI-based method that the company says is better at cleanly separating out the sounds. This could be a boon to creators tired of getting "strikes" via the company's internal copyright enforcement system or having their work monetized by others.
YouTube chief Neal Mohan posted about the tool on X and said, "Good news, creators: our updated Erase Song tool helps you easily remove copyright-claimed music from your video (while leaving the rest of your audio intact)." In the video, the company said that it had been testing the eraser tool for a while, but it wasn't as accurate in removing a copyrighted song. It noted that the new tool uses an AI-powered algorithm to specifically detect and remove that song without impacting other audio in the clip.
Assuming it works as advertised, this feature alone could remove a bunch of landmines on the platform. Copyright strike extortion would be a thing of the past, as would rightsholder betrayal, when "free" music is provided but then used to claim advertising revenue.
As for cops playing popular music in the hopes of preventing people from posting video of their misconduct, well, that never worked anyway.
Previously:
• Blackmailers use false copyright claims to shut down victims' Youtube accounts, offer to lift them in exchange for Bitcoin
• How Youtube's automated copyright system lets big music screw indie creators
• Youtube copyright trolls Adrev claim to own a homemade MIDI rendition of 1899's Flight of the Bumblebee
