Summary
- YouTube channels covering Nintendo games, like Domtendo, are facing fake DMCA takedowns.
- False takedown requests masquerading as Nintendo reps are being issued, with Nintendo confirming that the e-mails targeting YouTubers are fake and that it is investigating the issue.
YouTubers covering Nintendo games and featuring gameplay from its titles are being targeted by fake DMCA takedowns. YouTube has a DMCA system in place where that can make it very easy for someone to file a fake copyright takedown request, something that has been abused by others in the past and can be weaponized against unsuspecting YouTube channels. Nintendo has a history of being very protective of its IP throughout the internet as well, and YouTube is no exception.
Gaming YouTube channels cover all sorts of aspects of the games industry, but Nintendo has the trickiest track record when it comes to allowing YouTubers to post Nintendo-related content. Nintendo has been strict in its takedowns of gaming content in the past, with the developer of Garry’s Mod being forced to take down 20 years worth of Nintendo content as a result of a DMCA notice from the gaming giant. However, now it seems like figures posing as a Nintendo higher-up are getting videos removed.
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Late this September, the YouTuber Dominik “Domtendo” Neumayer received a takedown notice from what seemed to come directly from Nintendo. However, something was strange about the email address the notice came from. Instead of the usual Nintendo domain, the email was followed by an address using the encrypted service protonmail.com. YouTubers have the choice of fighting a DMCA takedown notice, but at the risk of their own channel. However, there have been rare cases of YouTube channels like Did You Know Gaming winning a DMCA case against Nintendo.
False DMCA Takedowns Continue to be an Issue for YouTube
Domtendo investigated the email further and looked into similar claims involving other creators. The email was signed by a Tatsumi Masaaki, and according to The Verge, no such legal representative exists at Nintendo. A real person by that name does exist at Nintendo, but in Kyoto, Japan, and not Nintendo of America, as the email claimed to be from. Nintendo’s long history of taking heavy-handed legal action, like how a fan-made Pokemon FPS was scrubbed from the internet after being hit with a takedown notice, makes it understandable why one would believe the fake DMCA takedown is legitimate.
Domtendo reached out to Nintendo himself to see if the email address was legit, and surprisingly, he received a reply. According to The Verge, Nintendo replied in an email on October 10, “Please note that tatsumi-masaaki@protonmail.com is not a legitimate Nintendo email address and the details contained within the communication do not align with Nintendo of America Inc.’s enforcement practices. We are investigating further.” After clearing up the takedown notices, further emails were sent from a spoofed Nintendo email address attacking Domtendo’s videos once more. Much to Domtendo’s frustration, DMCA takedown requests on YouTube continue to be used as a weapon to issue fake claims. YouTube has been very silent on these events, and false copyright strikes on YouTube continue to be an issue.
Nintendo
- Date Founded
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September 23, 1889
- Headquarters
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Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan
- Parent Company
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Nintendo