New Delhi, May 26 – In a controversial move, leading Indian news agency Asian News International (ANI) has reportedly started leveraging YouTube’s copyright claim system to target small and mid-sized news content creators on the platform. These YouTubers are being issued copyright strikes for using ANI’s video clips—even for reporting or commentary purposes—forcing them either to pay large fees or risk having their channels demonetized or shut down entirely.
According to industry sources and affected creators, ANI is taking advantage of a loophole in YouTube’s copyright enforcement policies in India. While fair use is a widely accepted legal doctrine in global media, it lacks clear enforcement in the Indian digital space. As a result, copyright claimants often get the upper hand by default, regardless of whether the content falls under fair use or not.
Many content creators who run legitimate news commentary or discussion channels claim that they used short snippets of ANI’s visuals only for informational or reporting purposes. Yet, ANI has allegedly been monetizing or taking down such videos, demanding thousands of rupees in “settlement” to remove copyright strikes.
This move has sparked outrage within the YouTube creator community. “It’s like legalized extortion,” said one independent journalist who had two of his videos flagged by ANI. “They ask for money even if you’ve used just a few seconds of B-roll with no audio.”
Experts warn that this trend, if left unchecked, could pose a serious threat to digital journalism, freedom of expression, and fair reporting on platforms like YouTube.
Ironically, several YouTubers point out that ANI itself republishes content from various government and public events, which are originally in the public domain. Yet, it continues to assert ownership over those visuals when others use them.
As of now, YouTube India has not issued a formal response regarding the controversy. However, creators are urging the platform to re-examine its copyright processes and introduce more robust fair use protections in India.
Until then, small news content producers may have to tread carefully—or risk becoming the next target of what many are calling “copyright claim business models”.
