Cat videos and internet memes are not the only content to have had massive success on YouTube, Let’s Play content has also shared in the madness, with Notch-born Minecraft taking up a whole whack of space on the user-generated website. But now it appears, Nintendo are allegedly beginning to monopolise on the success of Let’s Players who specifically play any Nintendo-owned content.
YouTube Let’s Player Zack Scott – who is currently playing through Luigi’s Mansion 2 – recently noticed that many of his Nintendo-related videos were issued with content ID matches, which prevented him from producing any money from ad revenue on his videos. Content ID matches are less severe than copyright claims, they serve a purpose to enable the publisher to monetize on content of and relating to what the publisher owns. With this in mind, Scott turned to Facebook, sending a message to his subscribers, and as an open message to Nintendo, explaining the issue. A portion of what he said is stated below:
“I think filing claims against LPers is backwards. Video games aren’t like movies or TV. Each play-through is a unique audiovisual experience. When I see a film that someone else is also watching, I don’t need to see it again. When I see a game that someone else is playing, I want to play that game for myself! Sure, there may be some people who watch games rather than play them, but are those people even gamers?
“Since I started my gaming channel, I’ve played a lot of games. I love Nintendo, so I’ve included their games in my line-up. But until their claims are straightened out, I won’t be playing their games. I won’t because it jeopardizes my channel’s copyright standing and the livelihood of all LPers.”
In a bid to set the record straight, Nintendo issued a statement to web publication Game Front, saying that they do not wish to block user-generated content from Nintendo material but will take ad revenue from Nintendo-owned content of a certain length. Do you think Nintendo should be monopolising on video content from YouTube? And what do you think this will mean for Let’s Players in the future? Let us know in the comments below.
As part of our on-going push to ensure Nintendo content is shared across social media channels in an appropriate and safe way, we became a YouTube partner and as such in February 2013 we registered our copyright content in the YouTube database. For most fan videos this will not result in any changes, however, for those videos featuring Nintendo-owned content, such as images or audio of a certain length, adverts will now appear at the beginning, next to or at the end of the clips. We continually want our fans to enjoy sharing Nintendo content on YouTube, and that is why, unlike other entertainment companies, we have chosen not to block people using our intellectual property.
At least the video’s aren’t getting removed.
SEGA…
HAHAHAHAHA
So true. Those LPers were getting money from ads anyway, serves them right.
Besides, I use adblock. No ads whatsoever.
youre a dick
Wow fuck you
You don’t know the full reprecussions of this, do you? Seriously, people earn livelihoods and money by LPing.
They might as well be. If I was an LPer, I would remove the videos. I wouldn’t want nintendo profiting from something I created.
“something I created”
LPers don’t create anything. They just upload footage that has commentary.
That isn’t true. Many LPers create news broadcasts, reviews, or heavily edited content supporting the game. If games played out like movies then I would agree but each LP is unique based upon the content provider. Nintendo also knows players use YouTube as a means of deciding whether to buy or not. They survey those that register games and YouTube is listed as choice of influence. They don’t need the money like the LPers do. If a video can influence someone to buy a $40 game, why not let him/her make the $0.10/view
Well this is an idiotic move. So much for starting my own Nintendo LP channel :(
Not with this backwards thinking by Nintendo. WAKE UP! You don’t need this revenue Nintendo…don’t be greedy
Hey man fuck you, they have every right to profit of THEIR IPs. At least they are not removing videos, of all the entitled statements I’ve heard lately……
You sir are a dickhead, people have a right to make money from videos they make. This is Nintendo making money off of other people, you clearly have no idea what you are talking about. This is a piss poor move from nintendo and will probably stop a lot of people making videos of their games now.
You do know this is Microsoft fault do you and that is Google idea to do it aint everyone?
Good, maybe these people will get real jobs and actually contribute to thier community. What kind of person watches other people play video games anyways lol, get a life people.
Its exactly the same as watching movies or television shows…dont get me started on “Reality TV”…
You sir, are a jerk. LPers love doing this as their job, and you have no right whatsoever to criticize them like some critic. Now remember not to be such a dick when posting.
Its to HELP them with the game. Like a walkthrough.
Fuck you. You are jealous that people actually have the guts to do what they love for a living. I’m sure you love video games, if you didn’t why would you be here?
Some LPers make money off of Nintendo’s content. I think Nintendo have every right to do this, even if it sucks.
That’s like saying it’s alright if I recorded a song you wrote while you performed it and sold it to the world.
how the fuck is recording a song, that has the same fucking beat and lyrics every goddamn time the same as playing a game, which your experience changes based on HOW you play it?
autism has a voice…and it seems it’s about time we listened.
Exactly. The people making the videos should be the people making the money. Nintendo shouldn’t be butting their way into THEIR content and stealing THEIR rightfully deserved money. Nintendo is only responsible for the sale their game and not the entertainment value that the commentator provides. I like Nintendo but this is not a move in the right direction for them
Oh but the people can butt their heads in on Nintendos games and use them to make money. figure it out you idiot
You are stupid, when you buy a video game, you don’t own the game, you own the disc or what ever it is. There for Nintendo has every right to do so, and yes they do need the money, if you lost a couple millions in a year, you would be in debt forever, you people always say Nintendo is awesome for having original content. Why don’t you guys give original content and stop piggy backing on others success.
Wow. Unbelievable. Rich companies have made people like you in to absolute sheep.
So, what, because Nintendo is richer they don’t have any right to make money off of their own content?
There’s thousands of other videos out there that LPers can make money off of.
If they’re only doing it for the money, then they’ve lost the original spirit and intent behind Let’s Plays, and have absolutely no right to complain, because they’re being just as greedy as the companies they point their fingers at.
I can’t believe how ignorant you are. Some people make the videos FOR A LIVING! If a band gets angry because they’re not getting paid for their songs, have they lost the original intent behind music? NO! because it’s their only job. Here’s a better example. If a gamedev stops making games because so many pirates are causing him to make almost no money, has he lost the original intent as well? Nintendo doesn’t need the money, the people that devote their time and effort to make the videos (which also promote nintendo FOR FREE) do. I would understand if Nintendo took like %30 of the revenue, but all of it? please.
These people should get real life jobs.
just like a jealous retard to envy someone getting money providing entertainment for people watching them.
you don’t tell actors to get real life jobs do you faggot? didn’t think so.
fuck you back enigmaxtreme. You didn’t even try to understand my point.
Look at it this way – all established LPers who put in a lot of time and effort to make a LP aren’t going to do it for free. They will either stop or move on to LPing games from the competition, effectively shutting down a branch of marketing for Nintendo
Bingo! This is such a fricken dumb move, it’s why I hate big companies and their copyright bullshit, they need to keep up with the 21st century and realised ITS FREE ADVERTISING FOR THEM.
Quit acting like they’re going to take the videos down. The videos are staying up.
Actualy this is a Google idea that is not just about Nintendo but also all gaming companys. Microsoft was the first to do it.
So? That doesn’t make it a good thing?
While I agree that it was kind of a dumb move, this: “all established LPers who put in a lot of time and effort to make a LP aren’t going to do it for free.” is just stupid. They get to earn money… by playing games..? If those Nintendo games are the favorite games to said LPers, wouldn’t they play them anyway? I mean, they get to earn money for something they would do for free! All they have to do is to talk a little, and *bang* lots of easy earned money…
They get to earn money… by playing games..?
Why not? How is it different from other content producers on youtube? As in, earning money from something they like to do.
“All they have to do is to talk a little, and *bang* lots of easy earned money…”
I’m sorry, but you’re clearly just another guy who doesn’t have a clue what effort it takes to make a Let’s Play. It looks easy, but I assure you, it isn’t.
You’re right, I do not have a clue about what effort it takes to make a LP. I have seen lots of people having a bad time trying to start up a channel and getting subscribers, and therefore I haven’t tried myself.
However, it is Nintendo-owned content they are showing to get money, so Nintendo is not doing anything wrong. Apparently they think they’re loosing more on LPs then winning on them, and therefore did what they did.
I would never have bought AC3 for Wii U if I haven’t seen all the LP about AC brotherhood by Tobuscus. But it’s Nintendo’s decision, they are not doing anything illegal ;)
You’re right, they aren’t. The question isn’t about if they are right legally, because they are. Morally, however…
I’ll side with the ones saying “The ones who want money for doing LP’s are missing the original spirit and intent of LP’s.”
If they really want to do LP’s for fun and entertainment as LP’s were originally intended, they wouldn’t want the money in the first place.
There are other ways to make money. If Nintendo’s preventing you from monetizing your videos, then you can’t complain about that. Nintendo owns the game, not you. They only licensed it to you.
Be glad that they don’t outright remove it from you.
Also, just note that everyone has different opinions on what’s morally right and what’s not.
Therefore, saying that it’s morally wrong is more of a belief than a confirmed fact.
Everyone seems to only think of LPers when talking about this. What about Top 10 people like JonTron or PBG? They put tonnes of effort into their videos, they only promote nintendo, and now they can’t make them because they won’t be able to afford to live.
Again, they should get real life jobs. They shouldn’t be making money off of someone else’s IP.
“Be glad that they don’t outright remove it from you.”
Yeah because having them take all your money is better right? Nah.
You mean games of companies like Microsoft?
http://www.examiner.com/article/microsoft-removes-halo-4-forza-others-from-monetization-on-youtube
Just because Microsoft act like dicks (for a change), doesn’t mean that what Nintendo is doing is right.
Kind of a crappy analogy, but if your friend did drugs, would it be ok for you to do the same?
Btw you can google it if you want, but big companies, such as Betheseda, allow monetization
“Microsoft acting like dicks (for a change).” Was that a joke? Cause since day 1 of entering the video game industry they have been dicks.
someone doesn’t seem to be able to perceive sarcasm….
Let’s not get off topic here. Just because Microsoft does it doesn’t mean Nintendo should.
“Time and effort to make a LP”
LOL what?
Clearly another guy who never LPed or made a half-assed effort of it. Another guy who thinks it’s just pressing record and droning on.
Do your research before you laugh at what you clearly don’t understand
Ok dear, I’m sorry but do you think you deserve a novel prize from recording a screen and talking into a mic?
Sorry man, but that’s what LPers do, anything else they may do, like graphics or editing, is padding, nobody cares for it and if you spend more than an hour a day doing it is because you want to and it is nobody’s obligation to recognize it.
You could use your days and your nights working like a good little fellow, but you chose to exploit a YouTube mechanic that allows you to live off of what most people actually pay for, like, you know, playing videogames and broadcasting their opinions on it.
Despite that, I don’t think the work you put on it is a source of laughter, instead I think your entitlement is risible, do you really think you’re providing an essential service to society? That’s what makes us laugh, that you think you could do a half-assed job at LPing and somehow the quality of our lives would decrease.
Yet again, you’ve never researched what goes into an LP, and therefore you’re talking out of your arse, so to speak.
1. I don’t LP (yet). I researched what goes into it out of interest of starting LPs, and I can better appreciate the effort it takes.
2. People care for ‘padding’, nobody wants to see a crappy quality LP
3. “You could use your days and your nights working like a good little fellow, but you chose to exploit a YouTube mechanic that allows you to live off of what most people actually pay for, like, you know, playing videogames and broadcasting their opinions on it.”
Yet another one who thinks he has an almighty opinion on what is ‘real’ job or not. I’m sorry if no one appreciates your burger flipping, but Youtube is a job…in the entertainment industry. I can imagine people with your same mentality telling TV or radio starts to ‘work like a good little fellow’ back in the day.
4. And lastly, let’s shoot down your laughable conclusion:
“…do you really think you’re providing an essential service to society? That’s what makes us laugh, that you think you could do a half-assed job at LPing and somehow the quality of our lives would decrease.”
Ok…where do I begin….are sports starts providing an essential service to society? Yet they get paid no? Oh, ok. Since we’re on a gaming site….let’s just tell all gaming developers to get a ‘real job’. We don’t need games…they’re not providing “an essential service to society” right?
Sorry, we can’t all be doctors :/
I love you right now
As a LPer it DOES take a lot of time, effort and money to be a LPer. This is a stupid move by Nintendo.
Said that I also have a real job. So I have TWO jobs.
That’s the problem dear, it’s “your job”.
You’re admitting to do an activity for the profit behind it, that’s what a job is.
Contrary to what you may think, LPing goes way back, much more than what monetizing does, and guess what, people still did it.
They did it because they wanted to share their experiences and their opinions, and guess what, you can still do that, so don’t cry censorship.
If this “job” of yous is no longer profitable, you can always move on to the next thing, become the next Nigahiga or Jenna Marbles, but don’t pretend that we, the users who actually pay our pocket money for the games we play and not the one we get from monetizing videos, owe you some sort of recognition for it.
Thank you. A thousand times thank you.
What would Nintendo spend the money on anyway?
Another bloody Zelda?
Another bloody Donkey Kong?
Another bloody Metroid?
More gimmicks?
More shiny objects for the fanboys?
Another bloody Mario? (BTW, he’s had about 20 games and featured in about 230 all up.)
They won’t do anything new as far as games go with the money, no outside the box games, and even if they do, it’ll just be another IP to thrash the shit out of. As far as hardware goes, they’re currently about a generation behind so I wouldn’t want them getting free money from someone else, even if the core content or subject material is theirs.
Don’t get me wrong, anon. Making an LP is really hard ant it can take up more than a day to get 1 episode done.
Personally, I think it’s a good idea. Nintendo profit’s from the games they make. That’s fine with me. The portion of youtube dedicated to lps is overcrowded, and I think by doing this, only the people who love doing lps will continue doing it, therefore, we will stop having so much garbage content.
That’s BS.
People were doing LP’s of Nintendo games long before monetization was a thing.
They did it for the RIGHT reasons; love of the games and wanting to spread them out to the gaming community in their own unique way.
We don’t need LPers who are only in it for the money as opposed to loving the games themselves.
People were playing sports and driving race cars way before they got payed for it. What’s your point? Someone want to make a living out of something they love to do. Sue them.
APPLAUDS YES
“They did it for the RIGHT reasons; love of the games and wanting to spread them out to the gaming community in their own unique way.”
Think about it in the opposite way; are people going to want to do that if Nintendo will profit off their opinions? That would be like if I played a game they brought out at a friends house, and I wasn’t allowed to tell people what I thought of it or share my experience with it unless I purchased my own copy.
This situation is bad for both the consumer and nintendo.
You condone Nintendo doing this?
You must despise all LPers right?
I think alot of people are jumping the gun here, much like when Nintendo said they were having an E3 conference, even though it works out way better for them, and makes no difference to us.
Look at my other comments below, basically saying why this isn’t a bad thing.
Where in the article does it claim “all revenue”
When a content ID claim is made against a video by a copyright holder, you lose ALL monetization rights. No exceptions.
do you ride in kangaroos pouches and also apparently huge spiders drink out of toilets ew wtf. thats some of the stuff you have seen. now LPs are doing good for nintendo why do this it sounds bad!!
Yeah man, it’s how everyone gets around in Australia.
damn the us sucks right now. i want to hitch a free ride in a kangaroo and kill spiders that drink out of peoples toilets. fucking gas prices and horrible economy. the american dream…… where people run the government and not it. our purpose was wasted.
Hey, our Government is just as useless. If we didn’t have the mining boom, our country would be screwed.
we have a ton of oil that would get us out of debt. oh wait…. lets wait to use it when oil isnt relevant anymore and waste that golden ticket that most would use.
And you condone a bunch of scumbags who live off of doing something that most of us actually have to pay for, who claim to do it for the art of the unique audiovisual experience yet basically say that they’ll stop doing it because they can’t profit from it anymore, slapping the community who subscribes to them in the face and shielding themselves in the “I’m being censored” bandwagon when actually nothing but their profiting from someone else’s content is being taken away.
LP existed way before users could monetize their videos, and users did it anyway, dear, this is not about LPers, and your passion filled demands only come as stupid, he or she who wants to do it for the joy of sharing videogames won’t care they can’t monetize any longer, or has never done it to begin with.
I’m a YouTube user, I have uploaded videos that have several hundreds and even thousands of views, YouTube asked to monetize them and I said not, because I know better that to squeeze money from something as stupid as uploading a song I made for the joy of it and not to profit from it, if I wanted more money I think I would get another job.
I don’t know why you are going around calling them scumbags. An LP is done for the entertainment value. Some people strive to make high quality videos and spend quite a long time on the videos they make. Do you not think they have a right to make money off the work they make? Moreover, people that upload videos on a DAILY basis that people actually look forward watching should be given the money they rightfully deserve. It’s like a job, you’re doing regular work, just not actually employed. You wouldn’t know this though as your comparing it to your videos which are probably simply videos that you just want people to watch with no intention of actual work in it. If someone is making these videos for the purpose of entertainment on a regular basis, they don’t deserve to have their rightful money stolen from them by Nintendo. They are responsible for the sale of their game, not the work and entertainment value of the commentators that actually work to make those videos
Lol someones butthurt.
Not even close.
Do you not even remember the days when LPers did LP’s of games for reasons outside of greedy monetization?
This is nothing more than pointing fingers at a richer entity.
Not all LPers do their thing for the sake of profit; the best ones do it for the love of the games, and will continue to do it despite not getting anything out of Nintendo games.
Saying “fuck you” to a person stating their opinion. How pathetic of you.
no they have not if you were to play chess and record it then put it on youtube you think the inventer of chess needs to get payed for this. NO of cours not so why should a LP pay to nintendo people most of the time watch for the person playing not for the game so not a good move
no they have not if you were to play chess and record it then put it on youtube you think the inventer of chess needs to get payed for this. NO of cours not so why should a LP pay to nintendo people most of the time watch for the person playing not for the game so not a good move
you are wrong, nintendo does need this revenue, because the wii u and 3ds are money sinks.
so much wrong with this. Nintendo is responsible for the sale of their game, and if a person makes a video promoting their game, they shouldn’t take that money
No.
It’s just a video website. If anything, you should be promoting him for potentially raising sales of your games. Think of it this way. If someone watches his videos and likes what they see, they are more likely to go out and try it for themselves than if they didn’t know what the game was like or perhaps didn’t even know it existed. It’s as simple as that. Nintendo doesn’t need to take ad revenue from anyone.
They’re not making him pull the videos. They’re just not letting him make a profit off of their games. It’s the Youtuber’s choice to stop making the videos. Nintendo isn’t saying he can’t upload or can’t play.
Youtube’s policy is pretty clear. You can only make money off videos that are entirely your creation.
^THIS and to the dumbass who said this is free advertisement, bitch be real most people go there because there want to know the story NOT to plan to buy it.
you could say that many people, myself included, watch LPs because they trust them more than reviews. There’s two sides to every argument, but to make my case….watch how Minecraft sales exploded after people started LPing it.
Why should I buy a game when I can watch someone play it for me?
This guy said it best.
mmm I think its fir enough that they have some claim to income generated by their products. but within reason. maybe like 10-30% of revenue that is earned through ads.
They’re right from a LEGAL standpoint, but from a moral standpoint, they are not. They realize that the videos’ ad revenue is derived from the video viewers, and that those viewers come for the commentary, not the game. Essentially, they understand they’re stealing from creators, but don’t care, because they cant face any legal persecution for this do to the use of their IPs. The only thing that can hope to counter this is some kind of boycotting effort, which probably wont even be enough. I doubt theyll break just because of some bad publicity.
They wouldn’t be coming for anything though if it wasn’t for the game.
If anything it’s a mix of creation, primarily being Nintendo. They spend years and thousands of dollars making these games — you’re going to argue that’s on par with playing a game and commenting on it?
This guy can still make his videos and comment on them. But to make money off of it seems wrong in the first place.
You can say that, but Nintendo should only be in charge of the sale of their game, not the entertainment that the commentator provides
From a moral standpoint?
From a moral standpoint, they’re not doing anything wrong, either.
Nor were the LPers, until they started going after Nintendo en force for not allowing them to make money off of NIntendo’s games.
Do you not even remember the days when LPers did LP’s for the sake of the community and for the love of the games?
If you’re telling me that it’s fine for the greedy portion of LPers to demonize Nintendo for this, then I guess you either don’t remember or were never a part of that time in the community, when the spirit of doing a LP for the love of the game was the right way of doing things, and monetization wasn’t the driving motivation.
Good guy Nintendo X’D
This is just as effective as removing the content in certain cases. If we take certain people such as James Rolfe who make their living off of YouTube while giving credit to all IP owners, but you decide to take his ad revenue, what does that do to his living income?
Now this is an extreme example, and many YouTube LP channels receive much less in such revenue. But that is still their revenue. What difference does it make if you take it from them by putting it in your pocket, as opposed to stopping it being generated by removing the videos?
They aren’t taking all the revenue though, that’s the difference.
In the same way that Youtube takes it’s revenue as well, Nintendo created the game, it’s still their copyrighted product.
Let’s Playing used to be a work of passion, rather than money. I’m slightly disappointed to see it take the place of normal jobs to such a degree, especially given that most should go into it knowing that they are playing with fire using someone’s else’s IP without proper permission. Things like this were bound to happen eventually, given time.
The best thing to discuss is what to do moving forward. I think it’s fair for content creators to be able to share all revenue. Rolfe would not be able to create his commentaries without Nintendo, and the former provides a way of advertising through a new avenue. Both parities can and should benefit from this.
I think that they should be able to share in the proceeds if they are both providing content together; Nintendo’s original audio and visual experiences and a Let’s Player’s commentary.
Youtube’s policies need to be shaken up to where a content owner can allow use of their work and be reimbursed through ad revenue without channels getting flagged.
…and the rest of us can just use adblock. :P
I don’t really like this idea depending how much revenue they will cost, at least they won’t block people using their property…
….chuggaconroy
He’s partnered with The Game Station.
The best solution is for Nintendo to work WITH the LPer’s.
LP’s have grown into a big thing, i watch a few things myself on Roosterteeth, Two Best Friends Play.
Nintendo should partner with those people, give them review copies, because it is free publicity, BUT i do agree that to a certain point, a small portion of ad revenue should go to Nintendo, that’s how everything works, it’s better than being like Konami and Sega.
Honestly, alot of people are raving about the share button features on the PS4, but if anything, unless they can upload that content straight to youtube, which i find unlikely, that works out worse for LPer’s.
I remember people having issues this gen using PS3 footage (correct me if im wrong)
No, the problems where using Microsoft ip’s footage ps3 problems are from konami ip’s
I know Konami were being assholes at one point.
But yeah, should’ve guessed Microsoft would be the issue though.
Wasn’t their an issue with capture cards on the PS3 though?
Ah you mean the sony was trying to make something that blocks the signal because they said that was how people pirated the bluerays. Dont know i what that ended.
Yeah that’s the one.
I dont know the full details of that, i just heard it floating around a couple of times
They should have done this a long time ago.
In a way it’s good. Nintendo needs money, but this is kinda too far. I also wonder what is Nintendo’s opinion of the 3DS capture boards.
I imagine they’re fine with it, same way they are with regular capture cards for Wii and WiiU, it’s just seen as a different case because its a specifically made device. Unless Nintendo made their own capture devices (which isn’t such a bad idea, it would give people alot more freedom on channels), they can’t really do anything.
yeah, I hate users on youtube put ADS on their video (for gaining money)…like NES music (FTW). Maybe I understand some game (FF VII one-winged angel have ALL ADS…and I hate ads). At least Nintendo did do something!
Why is it a bad thing?
If you’re watching content that people have spent time on, why can’t they make a bit of money on that?
Are you that impatient that you cant sit through a 5-15 second advert?
I dont think he has problems with adds but to watch a ad someone else vídeos and trailers is a bit anoying.
Yeah it is, but you just blank it out, it’s a few seconds long, not exactly a travesty.
its annoying that’s why I have ad-block.
fuck you nintendo, you greedy dumb bitches, so if anybody makes a video if its with a nintendo thing. they steal money from the creators? nice job fuckers see if anybody else even makes videos about your games. really out of all companies i didnt think nintendo would do this!!! ive been a fan of you and you defy to bring acclaimed titles defy core and do so many more wrong that make people leave!!!
Another idiot. Google is doing this with all companys and artist. Is not only a Nintendo thing.
They aren’t taking all their money though?
All they want to do is put advertisements at the beginning or end of the video and take a small amount of that as revenue.
I do think Nintendo should push to have better relationship with youtube channels, as i mentioned in my comment, but at the end of the day, it is Nintendo’s content, and they do have every right to take some profit from it.
Honestly, this is a much better thing, because now those channels have complete freedom when it comes to uploading Nintendo games, they dont have to worry about copyright, they can upload way more content than they original may have thought.
how much do they take out of peoples pay then and is it for every game on there platform they do?
I don’t know, i don’t work for Nintendo, but i assume it’s done by a per video basis, when a video hits a certain amount of views.
It sounds more like people complaining about making less money.
I mean come on, some of these people make a living on playing games, what right do they have to complain?
But this creates more opportunities for LPer’s because now uploading Nintendo games is free game, they can do how every many they want.
some people get views because there videos are funny and there more interesting while playing games or making something with it. so they become popular. maybe there doing a nintendo game and some people didnt here about it or not no much about it. they here what the person got to say likes what they hear and see so try it. free advertisements!!! some people will get a lot of people a formed of there games that way, and this might just stop that.
But it’s still not their game, it’s Nintendo’s.
I agree that i watch Lets Plays for funny commentaries, but the games theyre showing still isn’t theirs. Alot of the comedy comes because of the game.
But you’re missing the point that this free’s up the possibility of using Nintendo games, people can upload whatever they want.
I feel people getting angry about this either dont fully understand, or are totally fixated on how much money they make.
really i dont know really how this stuff works and dont really watch LPs, it just sounds bad. if they took likwe 10% or 15% that seems fair but like 25% is bad on all the advertisements and good to say stuff about it.
They get paid to sit a play video games.
Anyone complaining about that is ridiculous, it’s Nintendo’s content, people are getting paid for using it, Nintendo having some of that revenue is perfectly acceptable, not to mention way better than having content removed and a mark against their channel (3 marks and the channel gets shut down of i remember)
read the article again dumbass, don’t jump into conclusion.
Didn’t we play games and LP for the fun, and not for the money? And, what about the 3-month rule
It should be, but at the same time, entertainment is time consuming. If someone was to keep a 9-5 job, 5 days a week and attempt to run a channel, they’d barely have the time to do it.
Getting money on youtube, while abused by some shitbags like PewDiePie, allows alot of people to either work less or not work a job at all, meaning they can do more of the content they love.
I personally want to start game reviews, but it’s difficult when you have a job that you need to go to, and fitting the time in to do that is tricky, or not possible.
Reviews are different. If you have a successful review channel, you can make your own money. Showing the play through of an entire game though? Well that’s someone elses property. No matter how you play it. And how much work went into editing. They (LPers) shouldn’t make a dime on that.
Damn right. I’ve made videos for fun and didn’t even care if I got any views. Why would I expect money to make a video of me having fun playing a game I like.
That was indeed the case, then ad revenue happened.
I feel like, if you were to make a TV show, removing content would make sense, because you can actually WATCH the show from YouTube, which prevents the creators from receiving profit. But Let’s Play videos require a LOT of input from the LP’er, it isnt just a walkthrough or something. I watch NintendoCaprisun, and HellFireComms, and both of those channels offer completely unique twists on how they play and discuss gaming, which has nothing to do with Nintendo or the product, but is a sole property of the LP’er him/herself. Throughout Nintendo’s history, they have been screwed over legally left and right, with the Donkey Kong lawsuit with Universal in the beginning and recently the 3DS lawsuit, but I do NOT support this change and am starting to grow very worried that Nintendo may become the lawsuit behemoth that other shit stain companies are, such as cellphone service carriers and VEVO, who basically strangle users and prevent real creativity and expression from spreading on the Internet.
So they are taking money away from people who give them completely free and successful publicity for them, therefore taking away the incentive that content creators need in order to make this free publicity.
Why are they doing this? they arent protecting lost profits as they don’t make official lets plays, they are in fact gaining money from everyone that buys games based on LPs.
I know for a fact that I would not own a number of games that I so now if it wasn’t for LPs.
Nintendo shouldn’t be able to say, ” oh thanks for that free advertising that let us show our game to a wider audience”
“let me just take your small profit and put in in my multi billion piggy bank” and then expect content creators to just roll with it. and be like
“oh that’s cool Nintendo just take the money I worked hard for and you had no input in apart from allowing a point of discussion and shared interest”
I welcome anyone to argue this with me but I warn you now, make a stupid point and I will win with logic. (and if my logic tactic doesn’t work and you are still being wrong I will treat this topic like a panto)
But technically none of these Let’s Players have the right to use their content.
Most LPer’s worry about putting videos on youtube because of copyright, Konami and Sega and many others have removed content all together, which is a mark against their channel.
Technically speaking, Nintendo is basically saying “this is our content, so we will force advertising, and take some of the revenue, but you can upload whatever the hell want, and as much as you want”. That sounds like a positive to me.
But if the revenue is so minuscule as to not matter to a multi million company why bother, they will make more money off people who see the video and buy the game.
people are already confused about what Nintendo means when it says we will take revenue and LPers and content creators, I bet some Lpers are wondering whether or not to continue making Nintendo videos. I suppose they aren’t being massive fascists about it like SEGA but they are still limiting the amount of content creators willing to make Nintendo videos witch limits the free publicity that every single company ever likes.
It’ll add up, money wise.
It’s the same as using someone else’s music, that person gets a portion of the revenue because they’re using their creative content.
This isn’t a really shady and lucrative thing, im surprised it hasn’t happened till now.
If the creators of LP’s who are doing Nintendo videos only do them for the monetization aspect, then they’ve lost the original intended spirit that LP’s were founded upon.
They’re working a job at that point, not doing it for love of the game and the community surrounding it, if taking monetization out of it makes them stop playing.
In reality, all we’re losing are the most greedy of LPers; the ones that care the most about spreading word of the games and getting popularity and views for their channels, are still going to be producing Nintendo LP’s.
YouTube can also be partially to blame here as well. YouTube tries everything in their power to not have any sort of lawsuit against them by allowing themselves to be pushed around by companies. So if a content ID match happens, the person who owns the copyright (copyright troll or legit copyright owner), the money will go to them and not the YouTube user.
And as euromix2 above me said on how YouTube’s policies need to be shaken up and that Nintendo should try to work with the LPers and YouTube personalities who greatly support their content.
I think everyone could greatly benefit from that including Nintendo.
My ears are burning. :P
How about we make a new youtube, with no ads and free downloads (if the content creator allows) and each content creator recives income via donations (also copyright holders can get donations too)
The only way to do copyright is for 10 people to click a “I think this might be illegal” button at witch point we check the creator and ban him/her and call them a dirty pirate.
The end.
It will go bankrupt in a weekend.
use ad-block fool thats what is for.
I am one of those who always thought that LP’s were meant to be for fun! Surely if this was true then people would not care about nintendo getting ad revenue. In my experience, the amount you get from ad revenue is no where near enough to earn a living from it. People such as GTJio left the community because of how money centered it has become. I think Nintendo is in the right and LP’ers shouldnt have an issue with this either
“the amount you get from ad revenue is no where near enough to earn a living from it.”
If it is such a small amount why does Nintendo care? if it is a work of passion why not let the LPer take a few quid from views
Because when it all adds up it is a lot. Think about how many videos there are of Nintendo games there are on youtube. To one person it is not much but it really adds up if it is all put together
I typically utilize LP content from youtube to determine if the game being showcased is the game I wish to purchase. LPers provide key knowledge and understanding and critique about the game they show — content which is NEVER provided by the developer in the first place. This means that LPers provide a service not only to the youtube community but also to Nintendo as an “under-represented vender”. LPers should therefore be entitled to their earnings (for the work they do to increase Nintendo awareness) and I think it’s absurd that Nintendo wishes to deny them what is rightfully earned by LPers.
On the other hand, if LPers provided the same content but on an OFFICIAL Nintendo channel, then Nintendo should claim the ad revenue since it is their channel doing the work.
Does Nintendo corp. have within their officials any “moles” from their competitors? It seems that Nintendo keeps making very poor decisions that impede their financial growth and seizure of the gaming market. I don’t know, but this decision by them makes me have second thoughts about remaining as a 3DS owner and customer.
Nintendo aren’t trying to straight up remove content though, they just want some reimbursement for utilising their content. I think that’s fair.
As much as you can argue that LPer’s help with advertising, it’s not official and one could also argue that revenue could be lost by people being turned off by what they see in the experience (whether warranted or not) or have their “fill” of the game by watching someone else play it.
This is why I think that content creators should share revenue.
Not too surprised. LPers have had an easy life just because they were lucky enough to start in an era when LPing became famous. People shouldn’t be able to fully support themselves and bexond by just playing a video game and editing it for 10 mins. I’ve been observing and I’ve noticed most people aren’t passionate about it anymore, they’re less enthusiastic and dynamic, bend to the partner standards, a boring job with a fake personality to go along with it (Chuggaaconroy is the prime example here, along with Toboscus and NintendoCapriSun). If you get to earn money out of a free video site, the content SHOULD BE YOURS. I’m not allowed to take the full revenue of a car I’ve sold just because I was the one who presented it to the customer, my boss does. The worst thing about it is that so many YouTubers with a sizable viewerbase start LPing no wbecause it’s easy money. Stop this shit, LPing is not a job.
you still have some passionate creators but you have to look harder.
But those face cam main job LPers wind me up the wall (looking at you pewdiepie/tobuscus/Nova)
LPing as a job drains it of passion (compare early game grumps to new gamegrumps they are still good but the spark is almost gone)
GREEDY CHINKS
They are Japanese use te proper slang idiot!
As a LPer this is kind of BS. I got a notice about this from several fellow LPers and thought nothing of it but seeing this post brings alot of attention to the matter. Being a smaller LPer this doesnt effect me as much as others but i’ve met many people who have been or could be effected. My channel is compromised of mostly Nintendo games with my other friends do other games on the same channel. Hell the Channel is Named after Nintendo. I see where Nintendo is concerned about newer games being spoiled and people not buying the game because of people watching it to its full extent but in the same time it is advetisment for their games. EarthBound for example was brought to attention BECAUSE of YouTube LP’s (besides Starman.net and Smash Bros.) Hopefulley this won’t effect alot of my friends becuase this is gurting my loalty as a Fan of the Big N!
If you don’t mind me asking, how much of the ad revenue do they take?
Nintendo or me? I havent got contacted by the big N yet but im not partnered yet im in the talks with full screen
Nintendo are not concerned with people not buying a game or two based on a play through they watched on YouTube. They are just following the law. And YouTube is making sure your friends are doing the same. Seems to make perfect sense to me.
If you were only a loyal player of Nintendo games because you could make money off them, then you weren’t loyal to, let alone did you love, the games; you were loyal to, and loved, the almighty dollar, small an amount as it was, if not having monetization will stop you and your friends from making LP’s of Nintendo games.
Nothing more or less.
Wait, so let me get this straight. People who upload Let’s Plays involving Nintendo games now lose money that they would have gotten from ad revenues and that money goes to Nintendo? If this is right, I suppose It’s a good thing for Nintendo money-wise but it might make some YouTubers think twice about making Let’s Plays with Nintendo games.
Hopefully Nintendo straightens it out, i don’t like seeing this.
and lets not forget M$ is doing this as well but the difference is Nintendo is not blocking the videos.
keep this also in mind companies are now summing there copyright claims on YouTube this year, so you are going to see major difference.
when did this start happening cause I did a walkthtough of skyward sword and got no copyright claims.
no copyright but ads will pop up on your videos and nintendyboo will take some of that cash.
Depends on the amount of views you get, and it probably started recently.
this is goodppl work hard for cash etc and some random nolife gamer can earn millions of ad revenue on youtube? thats a bit stupid ins’t it and pleasedont tell me gaming is hard LOL
Sounds like someones jealous. Just cause you arent likable on youtube and want to entertain millions on youtube doesnt make it stupid. People will do whatever it takes to get money since unfortunately money is needed to live.
I’m fine with this.
They have the right to do it. If you upload things to YouTube, you must know the rules. I’m honestly surprised that they didn’t do this earlier.Hell, it’s surprising that Nintendo didn’t make them delete those videos.
The thing is, the way fair use works, is that you are legally allowed to use copyrighted material as long as it’s in a certain way, like doing a walkthrough or a review. However, you need to keep in mind that this also prohibits you of getting monetary gain from copyrighted material,
You could argue or whine that Nintendo doesn’t need to do this, perhaps maybe you’re right, but the fact is, by law, you shouldn’t make ad revenue off of footage from, in this case, Nintendo games.
Personally, I don’t care about the lives of LPers, since I find most of them to be annoying, of course there are exceptions, but I do care about YouTube channels that makes reviews or something similar, like, for example, GameXplain.
Doing reviews and playing a game with commentary and the like are 2 different things, so don’t mix things up.
And for the people protesting because of ads and stuff, use AdBlock.
Yeah Gamexplain is a Nintendo partner as well, he works with Nintendo. I think some Nintendo should do the same with some LPer’s though, partner with them, similar to Machinma partnering.
Mmm, maybe perhaps, but I often read that the Machinima partnering is a bad decision, something about your videos will be completely theirs or something, I really don’t remember.
^THIS adblock FTW!!!!!!!!!!
FT fucking W.
did i read it wrong cause it seems to say you just cant put on your videos with images or audio of a certain length so the fans can enjoy it more
put ads*
Nintendo is in the right. This guy didn’t create the content and it’s BS for him to try and be making money off it. You can’t argue that you’re controlling it so therefore it’s your creation. You couldn’t be able to control it without Nintendo’s creation.
What the hell is “Lets Players”?
people who do walk through of a software.
That sounds boring. That’s not a job.
Yet Tobuscus does it and makes $2 million a year….sounds like a job to me. Anything you do for a period of time that you get payed for is a job.
Gaming, unless developing or play testing, is not a job IMO. Just my opinion, if he makes money playing games then good for him, but how much joy does he get from playing a game now? I’d bet very little. That’s when I would stop playing games, when they stop being fun. I love developing them and playing them for inspiration, but not as a video walk through.
People who record themselves playing video games with commentary
It really sounds like these people have no life!
WTF NINTENDO!??! IF YOU WANT MONEY SO BAD RELEASE GBA AND SNES GAMES ON THE VIRTUAL CONSOLE FOR 3DS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
…I would LOVE GBA and SNES titles on the 3DS VC.
Bad marketing decision again from Nintendo. Let’s Players help Nintendo with FREE publicity. I don’t know what fucks up Nintendo in this time so that they become worse and worse in marketing stuff.
Yeah no, they have no right to do this under law,
Actually they do. Nintendo own the rights to the audio and video in the games and so own everything other than the commentary in the video’s which entitles them to the ad revenue on the video since they own the video and audio that is being used. If they wished, they could remove the video’s all together!
What do you think IP means? Dont be dumb.
This is …Wow, Are Nintendo really that fucking cheap to take some money out of other peoples pay? Wow. And people are actually defending this shit? How can you defend this? This is a really retarded move from Nintendo, they are getting FREE publicity and this how they repay them. Everyday it’s getting worse for Nintendo … IT’S AS IF THEY WANT TO DIE.
People who make youtube LP’s put a lot of time in to what they make, and for some people, it acts as if it was a full time job, whether it be editing the videos that they make, producing it, publicizing it, and staying in touch with the fan base in order to stay afloat in this youtube world. It’s very hard for some people to deal with this that put their time mainly into Nintendo games. We as a community loved nintendo, now they are ruining their fanbase by taking away the incentive you create any youtube videos on their videos. What’s the point if they don’t really gain anything from it? Sure they can just play the game because they like it, which is reasonable, but why waste time? They shouldn’t, people are busy, it’s hard to find the time to do something like that anymore along with another job. Revenue is key to keeping Let’s play’s alive and for some, this will stop LP’s on channels completely.
Revenue has only been available for about 2 years and Lets Plays have been around for much longer than that. Before revenue people made video’s for fun and the spirit of Lets Playing is meant to be about it being for fun! Also the amount individuals earn is not comparable with any form of wage because it is so slim for most people.
And you don’t think all those people at nintendo spending thousands and working sometimes years on games doesn’t constitute work?
The LP people could always upload their videos elsewhere or create their own website with ads on the website itself. On youtube? The rules are pretty clear — you only profit off of videos that are entirely your creation.
No! How is cobanermani456 (my favorite LPer) gonna get his money to buy and LP games?
Nintendo are right in this situation guys. Look at it as music. If some kid wants to make their own video on YouTube of a popular artists song… Of course it won’t sound the same as the original because the kid is making it their own. But its not their song to begin with.
People might like the way they sing it. They might watch the video 1000 times. But bottom line, you can’t make money on someone elses art or IP in this case.
For you idiots saying Nintendo don’t need this revenue… Be smarter. It’s not about “need”. It’s about basic business principles. You need to figure out the meaning of “Intellectual Property”.
Time to look for something that blocks Youtube ads, they’ve started to annoy me recently.
Websearch “Adblock”. I personally prefer the “Edge” variety for Firefox.
“It’s not making me any money, so I won’t play them”.
The true face of LPers.
Those LPers are the only people who should be affected by this.
Welp…This could mean the end of Sullypwnz, cobanermani456 and pewdiepie. Which is imo good. they only lets play to gain money. if i look at lets players like chuggaa they actually enjoy playing games on the internet.
Nintendo as a company is legally obligated to take legal action against those who use their intellectual property to make money, instead they choose to simply put advertising of their games on them and earn some money, and you get mad and bitch about it even when other companies like Microsoft, Sega, Konami, etc. better opt to close those channels practically ruining all the time and effort you as users put in making these videos … Are you F out of your mind?
Yeah, is not good, but Nintendo has opted for the lesser of all evils, give the company a break, and if you do not like it, then bitch about it to your Congressman and make them change the law that is forcing Nintendo and all the other companies to do this.
Thank you. People in this comments section screaming about “free advertising” and “it’s their content” clearly have no idea what “intellectual property” means from a legal standpoint.
“Oh boo hoo, Nintendo’s making money off of those poor LPers that are technically using Nintendo’s created content within their videos without permission!!” Give me a break. It’s the same thing with including an artist’s music within your video—how is this ANY different?
This shouldn’t affect anything, as most LPers say they do it because they enjoy it and have fun, not just for the money
Let’s Plays are a retarded concept; they’ve the right to remove them altogether, so I say why not?
For those who play for money, I guess Nintendo could break out the old golden seal of approval (which should still be on games to this day, mind you) and use it as a badge making some LPer’s affiliates or something.
That or some YouTube-based LPers could look toward Twitch TV (which I prefer to YouTube anyway). Now they run it as if it’s a job.
Seems a little two-faced, considering Nintendo was supporting the Runaway Guys only just a few months back. In fact, Nintendo asked them to make a video of Coin Rush mode in NSMB2.
http://tinypic.com/r/10xbpqd/5
http://postimg.org/image/mp0v2jkk7/
I mean, if they’re going to do this, then fine, but they didn’t have to get people’s hopes up by getting all chummy with certain LP’ers just to pull the rug out from under their feet.
Nintendo isnt wrong to do this. Sure, you can argue that LPs take a ton of effort more than they look, but you can’t say that without forgetting how much effort is put by the company to make these games. I remember a Nintendo developer saying he got 4 hours of sleep per week at best while he was working on Skyward Sword. If that’s not effort, I don’t know what is. The effort and money put into these games by developers far outwieghs the LPers, who still have the free time that game developers never have.
In the end though, both parties deserve a share, but the majority of profit should go to Nintendo, and the people who made the game. Think about it, if you worked your ass off to invent something, and asked a friend to help sell and advertise it, wouldnt you feel robbed if your friend was raking in all the money made from the units he sold, not giving you any of the profit? Of course you would, and it’s the same scenario here.
I think it’s wrong for Nintendo to take all the revenue, as free advertisement deserves a share, but the LPers are wrong in saying they should get full revenue, they deserve 10% at best
That’s not the same scenario at all. It would be the same scenario if the LPer was profitting off selling the actual game, which they’re not. Nintendo isn’t losing ANY money that they would make otherwise because of LPers.
That’s actually not true and I can’t believe you can’t see how this could potentially damage Nintendo when even this Zack Scott guy is addressing it.
Read his statement, he says that “There are people who watch instead of playing”.
First off I agreed with the “Are they even gamers?” thing, but then I really thought about it.
I haven’t bought Luigi’s Mansion Dark Moon, nor New Super Mario Bros U., and I don’t really want to, because I already know how they are, play and look, and I can’t help it but wonder how many people feel like it.
It’s not about the Let’s Player stealing from Nintendo, don’t be stupid, it’s about their videos diminishing the consumer’s interest in the game.
It’s not like Nintendo is censoring them anyway, they’re just adding ads and commercials in their videos, like thousands of companies do, at least when I watch a Nintendo video I get to see Nintendo-related material, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wanted to watch a music video and wind up having to tolerate a movie trailer, a tequila advert or an HP printers commercial.
This guy says so himself, he’s looking to provide a unique audo-visual experience, so why is it such a big problem that he’s being denied a percentage of money, if his interests are so righteous why is he protesting against not being payed for playing videogames? Truth is Nintendo is signaling a real problem in sites like YouTube or Kickstarter, like that guy who pretended to be bound to a wheelchair or a certain feminist who used her perceived status as a victim of cyberbullying to raise a 160K profit from her White Knights, the internet is full of people who are becoming scumbags, making money for doing stuff most people do for free or pay for, like playing videogames or broadcasting their opinions.
“I haven’t bought Luigi’s Mansion Dark Moon, nor New Super Mario Bros U., and I don’t really want to, because I already know how they are, play and look, and I can’t help it but wonder how many people feel like it.
And what’s wrong with that? It’s better than wasting your money on games you may end up not enjoying.
It’s not wrong for me, retard, it’s wrong for the company, you know, a business, an activity which only purpose is to make money, not a bunch of fantards like you and me.
Don’t insult me.
And please show me the part of my comment that says that I dislike the games.
All I said is that I already know them, so that diminishes my interest in them, not that I find them to be bad.
No, show me the part of my comment where I said you disliked them.
“It’s better than wasting your money on games you may end up not enjoying.”
This suggests I may have problems with the games and that this LP business is actually providing me a service by showing me how bad they are.
Also, good job there with your responses becoming increasingly derivative, I won’t write a cuss word again because it seems like you can’t take them, but let’s make a deal and see how you actually address what you’re being told instead of using your opinion on my bad language as the central substance of your retorts.
ok then. Yes, Lets Plays may be bad from a business stand point, but then again, so are reviews(ones not swayed by the dev or publishers paycheck).
If someone watches a LP instead of buying the game, there’s a good chance they weren’t going to buy the game in the first place. No one is forced to watch a Lets Play.
If devs and publishers are losing sales from Lets Plays, maybe their games aren’t appealing enough to most people to buy.
Also, I never did say you disliked them, I said “you may end up not enjoying” that’s different from outright saying you dislike them, I said “may”…”MAY” I was implying that there’s a chance you might dislike them, I wasn’t saying you definitely dislike them. And what i said was was more in general anyways.
Normal reviews of games tend to be far less extensive than a full Let’s Play.
In terms of spoiled content, you can’t even come close to comparing the two.
Pingback: Nintendo Claims Ownership of Let's Play Videos
I don’t understand what the big deal is. I mean, this only affect the people who make LP’s for the money’s sake.
Exactly, if they want money, how about they actually work?
It’s not like Nintendo is denying this guy the right to broadcast their licensed content, even when they could, and he’s saying that he’s only looking to provide unique audio-visual experiences, so why is it such a problem that he can no longer monetize these videos?
What he’s really saying is: “I’m not wasting any more time on popular Nintendo games because I can’t profit from them”.
Instead of a legitimate protest, what he’s saying and doing is a slap to the LPer community, he’s denying them of content because he can’t live off it anymore.
Which is why I have spent a shit ton of money to get started being one of those people…just to find its usless…
If you only intended to become one for the sake of profits, you aren’t doing it for the right reasons.
That’s not why LP’s were originally created; they were created for the love of the game, not for the love of monetization.
Before the wave of hate comes in on my last comment, I want to respond to this. (Sorry if I’m not supposed to double post, I’m new :P)
I agree with Eric that the point of an LP is to show your love for the game, not to make money. However, you must look at it from the standpoint of a LPer. You are putting time, effort, and money into games that revolve around a company you have been a customer of since a very young age. You love this company, and that’s why you show off playing the game. This indirectly acts as a form of advertising for that company, so a mutual relationship exists. However, that company now decides that they want to DIRECTLY make money off of your videos, so they take the path of claiming revenue. It just doesn’t seem right to me. I get that they own the content and that they might make more money off of it than the sales from advertising through the videos. (Maybe)
However, this just is wrong to do. The videos were not harming Nintendo, in fact they were helping Nintendo. Why take away the money the guy behind the videos makes just because legally there’s nothing he can do about it. I just don’t think that’s the company I want to see Nintendo become. I’m sure nobody wants Nintendo to become this. So that’s why I think it’s wrong. I’m sure many disagree, but hey, it’s just my opinion.
I disagree.
I don’t feel it’s wrong at all for Nintendo to take money from an intellectual property that they themselves spent far longer making than a LPer does talking about it on their videos.
On top of that, the LPers are given the privilege of playing the game and being allowed to keep that footage online to bring popularity to their channel for any non-Nintendo videos that they might have to make money off of, despite the fact that it is acting as a spoiler for major portions of the game and thus has just as much of a chance of turning off potential customers as it does turning them on.
I’ve known more than a few people who would look away from purchasing a game if they already knew most of what was going to happen in it, because the surprise is part of the experience and has a heavy hand in their purchase decision.
If the LPer’s love the game enough, then they won’t play them for the sake of making money off of them, and they’ll continue to do LP’s of the games they love regardless of whether or not they see a check.
Those are the ones worth watching because those are the ones that you can trust to put all of their heart and effort into a LP video, to give us tons of quality footage about many aspects of the game that we might not even know existed through normal reviews.
Eric Sellers….you must be a child. That’s the only why I can understand your line of reasoning for not wanting to make money for something you njoy doing. Obviously, you don’t grasp the concept. Let’s imagine you are a game designer. You LOVE making video games, but making video games is time consuming. Wait, hold on, you find out that you can actually get PAID to make video game! Now you can do what you love and the time dumped into doing it has financial meaning! Oh…now the publisher, who you have never met before, says there is a legal loophole preventing you from getting paid at it anymore because they owns the rights to the engine you are building the game off of.
Kinda makes the whole concept of making games a lot crappier, don’t you agree?
Lol! Pretty straightforward in my opinion. Nintendo is “not” blocking the content but LP’ers cannot make money off the company’s IP. If these LP’ers are doing it for the “love of gaming” then they can STILL MAKE VIDEOS but NOT RECEIVE anything from ads. Some say this will limit free marketing/exposure for Nintendo- it won’t. Why? because youtubers can still make videos if they want to. Now the question is, are these so called LP’ers doing it because they love video games in general OR are they in it for the money? With their reaction, the answer is obvious.
As for saving people from buying a bad game, an option is read/watch reviews. Why bother watching a playthrough when it will just spoil the game for you as you now know what to expect. Or you can watch another LPer that does not charge anything for ads and is doing it just for the sake of it. Problem solved.
I agree completely.
I see there will be a problems with this if gameplay video seen in review video moves all income to Nintendo and nothing for person who is making that review and actually getting more people to buy the game.
Problem is sometimes reviewers can be bought or predisposed to give games better ratings to keep healthy connections with developers/publishers so they have easier access to new content. Sometimes seeing the game can be the only way to get a genuine idea of how good or bad it really is. Case in point: BioShock Infinite.
I wonder…do any of you REALIZE that some LPers whole livelihoods reside on the ad revenue generated by doing LP videos? It’s not even like it’s easy work. They don’t just play through the game and hope to get good footage. Some practice for days on end and then spend hours a day editing and commenting over the videos. To basically have all that hard work boiled down to “you’re no longer getting paid for showing off our game” will give every LPer out there every incentive to not only not display Nintendo games, but also remove the videos. Whether half of you fanboys on the site want believe it or not, LPs push game sales. If every LP thus was to stop making Nintendo vids or significantly slow them, the interest in an obviously struggling company will begin to show.
Let me ask you, would you not agree that the very fact Nintendo is the ONLY big name company to pull this BS a clear sign that they are desperate to make money and get there books in the black? It was never a question of whether they can legally do this or not (that’s obvious, they can) it’s a matter of if it’s the right thing to do. Also, believe it or not, but LPing is hardwork. Not physically, but it is strenuous and can be quite expensive if done well. All the LPer did is buy the game from Nintendo (typically at brand new pricing, also) and they want to show it off and make money while doing it.
It really is no different than you going to a friends house and watching him play a Mario game while he wears a Coca-Cola shirt. Coca-Cola pays him a dime every time you pop by his house and watch him play the game. You don’t see the money, because you choose to watch him play the game, and Coke pays him the money because he set himself up to advertise while he plays the game. NOW, Nintendo is so desperate for money they are busting into to your friends house and telling them that every time YOU CHOOSE to watch your friend play the game he legally bought, Nintendo is stepping in to collect that dime from Coca-Cola. Why? Because Nintendo owns the game you are watching your friend play.
Once again, it’s not a question whether Nintendo can legally take that dime from your friend, it’s whether they should at all.
Zack Scott eh? I watch him lol. As long as Im still making money from my Lets plays even though I dont call them “Lets Plays” I call them a series. If a Nintendo ad is what pops up on my video fine, better then a COD ad. My gaming channel is basically JUST FOR Wii U games so as long as I still make some money Im all good.
It’s Nintendo’s property and the law is the law. We can’t bend the law to fit people’s wants and needs. Those Lets Play videomakers are earning money through the use of Nintendo’s games. It only makes sense Nintendo gets the money or at least a cut of it anyway. 💋
What the actual fuck, Nintendo? I am one of your fans since the SNES, but don’t screw us over because we want to do Let’s plays on youtube! Don’t try to be a Monopoly like Time Warner Cable!
Nintendo has every right to do this. They made the games so they have every right to have their rules over them. I do not mind seeing let’s plays, but making money of them can be copyright infringement. It’s like taking a piece of art someone else has made and selling it for your own profit without permission. I would rather make my own content and make money of it than to make money off someone else’s content.
Incorrect. It’s like taking a piece of art and making a commentary about it. If the person makes money because people are willing to listen to said commentary, the art should not get it. The artist should be perfectly fine making money off the art, not what is being said about it.
This^
There’s no question that Nintendo has the right to do it. The question is, is it right to do it? My answer is no.
Why? Well this in general shows that Nintendo is being forced to jump to quick profit methods because they are competing with companies that do the same. But THAT’S NOT NINTENDO. Nintendo put the players first! That’s why we love them! People who do Let’s Plays are dedicated, loyal fans who not only buy the content, but show it off in a way that makes people want to also buy it… AT NO COST TO NINTENDO. So why is Nintendo going to deprive these fans of the money they earn from making these videos? Because they can? Because sales are down? Sure, Nintendo’s a company, but not that kind. While technically Nintendo can do this with no true backlash, they need to be a decent company and think about the players. The players who have been playing their games since they were little kids. The players who still buy their games and consoles today. And the players who are so dedicated to them that they are making videos showing off the content. Sure, they can probably do some videos without the revenue, but why give them that obstacle? I mean, do they expect people to continue as if nothing happened? If I were a Let’s Player I would be pissed, wouldn’t you?
I just sent an email to Nintendo stating my concerns, and I suggest that you guys do the same. It’s worth a shot.
I’m a let’s player myself and while Nintendo may have the right to do this, I find it completely crazy. I love LPing and I find it hilarious how some people wanna say to get a “real” job. Some people actually would love to earn money for what they enjoy and while it may seem there is no effort, there actually is for people who upload a lot and edit videos. It’s entertainment so it’s not like you’re a carpenter but you still have to put forth effort and work into it. While it is their game, it is NOT their gameplay and it’s not their commentary. I can understand if nintendo wants some of the revenue but think it would be fair to at least split the revenue with LPers. I love Nintendo games and LPing but I won’t give them free promotion if they are going to do this. I will gladly promote other people’s games because I’ve had multiple people say that they will buy a game for themself or for their child because of my playthroughs and I actually have bought and given away nintendo consoles to my viewers/fans to promote nintendo’s systems and more. The money that lpers earn off these videos they also use towards buying more nintendo content. They may have the right but this is a really shitty move because nintendo’s advertising is already really shitty and many people will be turned away from this move. Not only that, this hurts most businesses that promote a companies games like Machinima, TGS, GameXplain, etc to where now even more jobs are gonna be lost and that means even less promotion for Nintendo. It’s not just LPers but it’s gaming networks, business, reviewers, and more that will be hurt by this move. So yup Nintendo has the right but it’s a bad move nevertheless. Not saying I do LP solely for the money but it feels like a slap in the face because I have been faithful to nintendo and try to promote their stuff and invest a lot of money into equipment for my videos and it’s not just me.
See, this is kinda what I’m going for here. It’s just the idea of making videos that you know are benefiting a company who is intentionally taking money from you doesn’t seem right.
I have yet to see a single LP that wasn’t painful to experience. I could not care less.
Though on the one hand, Nintendo is well within their rights to claim the ad revenue on videos showcasing their property, but on the other hand they could treat it like “paying” the LPer to advertise their product.
I may think LPs are an extreme waste of time, but I’m inclined to believe the latter is actually more beneficial for NIntendo in the end.
So just because you don’t like it, and other people make money (in many cases REALLY GOOD MONEY) at doing this, it’s worthless and worth taking their money. You do realize how conceited this is to say, correct?
I deserve the right to make money off my fanfiction/art! Wait you mean that’s not acceptable to use IP as a way to springboard my own earning potential? Aww shit.
I swear the people on this site. If Nintendo told you that it was instigating an ethnic cleansing program half the users here would leap to its defence! I’m a big fan of the big N but this is a horribly backward policy and will do for them the exact opposite of what they hope to achieve. Let’s Plays are good for game sales, so many indie games receive exposure through let’s plays on youtube.
Talk about a false equivalence. Nintendo aren’t even removing videos, they just want a cut for their creative work being used to make money. They don’t need the advertisement LP’s allegedly bring and they certainly didn’t ask for it. In a way, LPer’s should be thankful that Nintendo are going about this in such a reasonable way. It’s Youtube’s copyright policies which are in the wrong because there should be a way for Nintendo to take a cut without messing up a channel’s status.
Bad argument. It’s not a “cut” when nintendo demands ALL AD REVENUE of the LP videos. Read into the articles linked better and you will see how deep this goes. It dones’t just includes LPers. It includes ALL videos of significant length (read: more than 30 seconds) will now be monetized, regardless of whether they were or not before with ad streams so specifically Nintendo can make money off of said videos. It’s the saddest, most desperate cash grab Nintendo has ever done.
How so? People should have known years ago that uploading other people’s intellectual property wouldn’t go down well and it’s just lucky for us that we’ve gotten away with it for so long. The only reason I’m for potentially sharing revenue if for videos where the uploaded adds something new, but for videos that are literally just Nintendo’s audio and/or visual work and nothing moren I don’t see why Nintendo, the wholly original creator, should not wholly benefit.
What we were doing is essentially illegal, or at best, in a grey area. The fact that Nintendo aren’t even against uploading their content shows good faith from their end. I don’t see how they can be painted as “evil” for claiming what should be rightfully their in the first place
THANK YOU! Someone on this site tells it like it is! If it wasn’t for certain Let’s play’s my game collection wouldn’t have certain games in them. They are jsut good or business, and taking money from those people is the worst decision a company as big as Nintendo could have made. It is literally the Big Guy beating up The Little Guy.
But Nintendo didn’t ask for this advertisement, and it could easily be argued that for every person who buys and game after seeing an LP of it, one would not buy it because they got their fill of the game since they know what happens. So far there has been no proof either way so Nintendo are within their right to request money for using their IP’s, and they aren’t even demanding they be removed. They only people who truly suffer are the ones who were using someone else’s work to make a quick cash-grab, and I have no time for people like that and say “good riddance”.
Well, seems like Chuggaaconroy is gonna be broken.
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Again, Nintendo is NOT blocking the content. What is stopping LP’ers to make some videos? Oh wait, they can’t earn from it anymore that is why they do not want to do it. I will now play a game where the company allows me to make money of their IP because I really like doing Let’s Play videos for the fans….
See, this argument is based off the idea that since LPers expect money off of it means that they aren’t doing it because they enjoy it. If you’re a teacher and you love to do it and work hard, would you be perfectly fine with continuing if the school decided you wouldn’t get paid? It does actually take time, effort and even money to make successful Let’s Plays.
NIntendo must be EXTREMELY desperate to be literally the only major label company to steal money out of their fans’ pockets. It’s pretty much the worst business move and the worst PR move they have made all year.
You know what…here is the en all be all comment:
If Nintedo was REALLY so concerned about he intellectual property being damaged or misused by LPers, they would just BLOCK all Youtube videos featuring Nintendo content and just be that jerk gaming company that “just did that”.
Would they be hated for it? Yep. WOuld they be in their legal right to do so? Technically No, but in many cases, yes. Would people get over it? Yes…after about a year or so, but yes.
Instead, Nintendo is taking the under-handed route and saying “There’s a dollar to be made!” and removing all ad revenue from anybody that’s ever hosted a Nintendo video on Youtube and lining their pockets with it. It disgusting to do this to their fans, and if they keep this up Nintendo will not be in the home console business much longer.
The lpers do have jobs but they use the Ad revenue to continue putting back in to the lets plays to make better content buy new games and consoles
What you people don’t realize is that this can hurt both sides. If Nintendo takes money from Let’s Players, that could lead the Let’s Players to delete all their videos and quit YouTube and Nintendo would lose MORE money. Nintendo is playing with fire…
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Ok everyone imagine if the people who invented football did something like this. Who do you think would get the money. The football players or the people who invented football?
I’m one of the many, many, MANY Nintendo fans around. Nintendo is my favorite game franchise. I also watch LP videos and plan on making my own one day. But if I can’t play games of my favorite game group, I might as well not play them. It’s not like Let’s players are going to take credit because everyone knows about Nintendo. But I love Nintendo because of there games. So I hope they can fix this.
Nintendo is being unfair by taking all the money from LPers, I never LPed but even someone who watches alot of LPs even I KNOW it takes hard work to make a good video and Nintendo is being a Troll and sneaking in and taking away that money, First of all the LPers are advertising the games and Nintendo FOR FREE And come on who doesn’t buy a new game you see from a LPer playing it, I’m not saying Nintendo is doing the wrong or right thing but at LEAST 30% of the money to the LPer because they are ADVERTISING NINTENDO FOR FREE EVEN WITHOUT getting money! Nintendo is going in the wrong path and people are going to stop buying the games from nintendo because they are being brainless and going to lose EVEN MORE money.
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