Regretfully, the court has ruled that the web host of YouTube-dl, Uberspace, must delete its data and bear joint liability for copyright infringement.
Brook.X
The well-known open-source downloader YouTube-dl is still embroiled in legal disputes. In a recent lawsuit, the German web hosting service Uberspace was defeated in court, which found it responsible for fulfilling copyright protection obligations.
The YouTube-dl project is primarily hosted on GitHub. Previously, a copyright organization sent a DMCA notice to GitHub demanding the project's removal. GitHub complied with the request but later restored the project due to significant controversy, thereby refusing the DMCA takedown request.
The project's official website was hosted on Uberspace, which later received a DMCA notice from the copyright organization demanding the cessation of hosting and data deletion. Uberspace did not agree to the deletion request, and YouTube-dl decided to take the website offline.
Despite going offline, Uberspace's struggle with the copyright organization did not cease. A German court recently issued an unfavorable ruling, holding Uberspace accountable for allegedly violating YouTube's copyright protection measures.
In some respects, Uberspace had no obligation to maintain the YouTube-dl project — most web service providers would simply delete a site if it were attacked, found to violate copyright, or encountered other issues, as they prefer not to involve themselves in unrelated matters.
However, Uberspace believed that it should not act this way, at least not in the case of the YouTube-dl project, arguing that the project is not illegal. It is an open-source software that does not host infringing content, and how users utilize it is beyond the project's control.
Following this logic, Uberspace chose to ignore the DMCA notice, leading to the lawsuit by the copyright organization. The lawsuit in Germany was initiated by the Federal Music Industry Association, with the Hamburg Higher Regional Court rejecting all of Uberspace's appeals.
It is noteworthy that while dismissing the appeals, the court also ordered Uberspace to bear some liability for copyright infringement. However, the judgment details, including the amount of any compensation Uberspace must pay, have not yet been disclosed.
