BSGfanfilm website content lifted & put on YouTube

[ernie90125]

Hi all,

Don't know what to make of this.

Someone has gone though my whole website and lifted all the fanfilm. Then signed up on YouTube as Battlestarfanfilms and uploaded them.

It does, I suppose help promote osBSG fanfilms. The descriptions do include a link to my site amongst other prominent websites.

But I put a lot of hard work into that site, and obtained permissions from all the fanfilm creators....and they have just taken it for themselves. Haven't had the courtesy to contact me. I only found out when 1 fanfilm creator complained to me, asking if I had done it.

So is this a good thing ?

I dunno. I'm not angry as I don't think its been done maliciously, its more the lack of courtesy to me, the creators, and all the work put into fanfilms and the site.

[Charybdis]

I guess it would be nice to know exaclty where our fanfilms are going or being posted...

[KJ]

Sorry to hear somebody invaded your site like that man. But if i were you i'd go to youtube.com and leave a message underneath the clips on youtube saying that was your stuff originally and point out the website of yours from which the info was stolen from! Or better yet complain to the website owners and ask they remove them.

You'll have to take measures protecting your site allowing for the downloads still but however your actual system shouldn't be invaded like this however.

Not defending whats happened to you from the thief's point of view Ernie, but this does go to show that many video files and alot of clips from practically anywhere online were stolen and put up on sites like Youtube, are blatantly taken in that manner and pasted up there regardless. Its a damn shame indeed. Hope you can shame whomever over there though, although to be honest i'm not too sure about you pointing out you're own website. Any future updates going up on the pages might also be pulled once again blatantly!

Best advice i can give you now is put up a powerful 'program' to prevent "hotlinking"! i.e. right clicking and pasting of a file to another person's webpage. Thus you can make regular downloads from your site, but whomever can't link future clips/movies and use them on another person's website page which steals the link from yours!

Just means you'll have to monitor visitors on your site and everybody will have to open a clip's page "via" left clicking and download the file when its completed (meaning no hotlinking to it?)

Anyways wish you the best in trying to protect your files in future from greedy no-name individuals who certainly have lack of courtesy and try to claim it as their own. I'd prefer much your Battlestarfanfilms site than youtube that loves files in flash mediaplayer format. Than say files in either the 3 basic programs like; Windowsmedia Player, Quicktime or Realplayer?

Take heart Ernie, you haven't really lost anything when you view your situation like that!

Laters

KJ

[ernie90125]

The person who did this has been in touch privately.

He's a really nice guy who has been supportive. I won't name him as I think this is more of an misunderstanding on his part, of what I would appreciate. I am very grateful for the other things he done, just not this one.

He's apologised (which I accept) and taken them all down and deleted the account. I hope there are no hard feelings, there certainly aren't on my part.

In fact it inspires me to consider making a trailer for my site to distribute on youtube to promote what I'm trying to do.

Let's move on.......

[ray243]

However, if anyone really wanted to spread oBSG wider into audience, youtube would be the way. Frankly, there isn't much way to stop people from uploading fanfilm onto youtube.

Some people may not want to waste space just to download another film, but to simply watch it. Youtube offer them the chance. While it can only support a lower quality video, this allows people who are really interested to download for your site.

Basically uploading content up there is an advertisment.

[joe.beaudoin]

Ernie,

I would probably secure permission from the film makers to have the content posted on YouTube, since (as Ray said) this is one of the few ways to get these films out to a larger audience. And the classic BSG and film makers who are passionate about it deserve to get seen and recognized as well.

Also, if you want (and if the film makers are willing), I can mirror the content on BattlestarPegasus.com as well.

I agree he should throw up all those films up on You Tube at their lower image quality, then just post the BFF link at the top of the descriptions so people who want to get the higher quality doownloads can do so. It would only drive more traffic to his site.

[ernie90125]

Agreed....I will start asking fanfilm makers for permission.