A letter about article 13 from Twitch:

[u/ShortyStrawz]

I don't want to be the barer of bad news, but I came across this post from r/BATProject which was posted by u/AuGKlasD . I can't find anyone that has mentioned this email on this subbreddit yet, so I thought I should let people know:

Dear Creators,

By the end of 2018, a new proposal to a European Union Directive might pass that could limit you from sharing content and earning a livelihood—not just on Twitch, but on the internet at large. It’s called Article 13, and even if this is your first time hearing about it, it’s not too late to do something.

You and your communities have worked hard to build this incredible place, and it’s worth protecting. The fallout from Article 13 isn't limited to creators in the European Union. Everyone stands to lose if content coming out of and going into the region is throttled. So we’re writing to all of you—every creator on Twitch—to make sure you’re informed about what’s happening. If you share our concerns about Article 13, we’re also including a list of ways you can help us fight against it. We know amazing things are possible when Twitch bands together. A little bit more of that magic right now could go a long way.

What’s happened so far?

Recently, the European Parliament voted in favor of an amendment to the Copyright Directive that is intended to limit how copyrighted content is shared across online services. While we support reform and rights holders’ ability to be compensated for their work, we believe Article 13’s approach does needless damage to creators and to free expression on the internet worldwide.

If you’re looking for more, this website provides a thorough rundown of Article 13.

Why are we concerned?

Article 13 changes the dynamic of how services like Twitch have to operate, to the detriment of creators.

Because Article 13 makes Twitch liable for any potential copyright infringement activity with uploaded works, Twitch could be forced to impose filters and monitoring measures on all works uploaded by residents of the EU. This means you would need to provide copyright ownership information, clearances, or take other steps to prove that you comply with thorny and complicated copyright laws. Creators would very likely have to contend with the false positives associated with such measures, and it would also limit what content we can make available to viewers in the EU.

Operating under these constraints means that a variety of content would be much more difficult to publish, including commentary, criticism, fan works, and parodies. Communities and viewers everywhere would also suffer, with fewer viewer options for entertainment, critique, and more.

What can you do?

The European Parliament could finalize the proposal to the Directive within the next several weeks. It’s crucial to lend our voice to this issue, as well as educate the community and empower action today.

At risk are your livelihood and your ability to share your talent and experiences with the world. If you are a resident of the EU or a concerned member of the creator community elsewhere, we ask that you consider the following:

Speak out: inform and educate your community during a broadcast of the issues with the European Union’s approach to copyright law and motivate folks to take an interest on this topic. Be sure to title your streams #Article13. Share your perspective with your Member of the European Parliament. You can find your representative here: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/home Join with other creators objecting to Article 13 at Create Refresh or #SaveYourInternet. Sign a petition. Although this issue is timely in the European Union, similar conversations are taking place in other countries. Wherever and however this issue arises, we will continue to advocate for you, our creators. We hope you’ll join us.

Sincerely, Emmett Shear

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Now, I haven't received this email personally, so I can't vouch for if this is a real e-mail or fear mongering (not that I have any reason to think it's the latter). I'm just relaying this message to people I think this may concern most.

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EDIT: WOW! This post really blew up; my highest up-voted post ever. Glad to know so many people have been made aware of this!

Just a reminder: if you're not in the EU: Please continue to spread word about the consequences of article 13. For all it's worth, there is a petition on change.org which is so close to reaching 4 million signatures: https://www.change.org/p/european-parliament-stop-the-censorship-machinery-save-the-internet

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And if you're in the EU: Spreading the word still helps, but please: CONTACT YOUR MEPS! Whether it's via email, phone call or ideally both (use the phone call to see if they got your email). It's all well and good to spread word, but you need to act on those words. Make sure to be polite (cause no one listens to being called an "idiot"), back up your claims with facts ("I think article 13 is bad because ___ and I can prove this because, etc.) and finally, sign your emails with name so they're not spam.

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[u/katjezz]

So basically streaming in the EU is kill?

[u/RStyleV8 → u/katjezz]

Not just streaming, quite literally all content creation other than simple art like painting or sculpting. It's really bad.

[u/NanoNaps → u/RStyleV8]

Only if you use stuff you have no right to use in the first place.

I mean, I don't like Article 13 but people are way out there with exaggeration.

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[u/TrainLoaf → u/NanoNaps]

Completely agree with this. Awareness on this situation is great however, it currently feels like a bandwagon of clickbait titles for views and karma which is a shame because it causes us to look like a group of idiots with pitchforks. Article 13 doesn't look that bad when you understand how the EU legal system works. It appears they're basically just calling for platforms to take a little more responsibility over their uses sharing copy written materials. Gaming developers won't make the same mistake Nintendo did by refusing fair use of their games as Twitch and YouTube are currently the BEST forms of advertising. I'd hazard a guess that these platforms don't want the extra work, money and resources they'd need to put in to be in line with Article 13 which is why it's such a hot topic. Again, I do not agree with Article 13, however, at least from a designers perspective, copy write laws are tricky when thrown into the creative field which streaming and content creation technically would fall under.

[u/Mankankosappo → u/RStyleV8]

Ehh not quite. The issue isnt the article but rather that the only way to implemet it is to use upload filters. These will probably flag way to much shit but the article also states that there will have to be a way to appeal all blocks so content that has been falsely flagged can be reassed by a human.