“Fair use is legal use”: Copyright negotiations and strategies in the fan-vidding community

Abstract

This article explores the complex relationship of a particular community of remix artists, known as vidders, to copyright law. With streaming video capabilities and the widespread popularity of remix culture, the historically underground vidding community has been forced to adapt to new conditions. In response to much existing scholarship, which portrays remixers and fans as victims of an unjust system, this research draws on ethnographic research to reveal community-based strategies used by vidders to mitigate the risks as perceived infringers of copyright. It will discuss vidders’ understandings of copyright law in relation to their work, and also their efforts to legitimize fan practices and remix as legal uses of copyrighted material under US law. Rather than being seen as simply victims of an unjust system, this research demonstrates that online communities have worked proactively to understand and respond to perceived copyright threats.

A Pilot Study of Fan Fiction Writer’s Legal Information Behavior

“…; see also Freund, 2014Freund, , p. 1352. The research also suggests that community norms are important in governing fans' behavior, and that norms overlap between individual fans, fan sites, and creators of different types of works , p. 1026; compare fan vidders in Freund, 2014;compare Hetcher, 2009;Tushnet, 2007a;Tushnet, 2007b). Fan norms include an emphasis on non-commerciality , p. 10272007a;Burgess, 2017;Tushnet, 2007b) and attribution of borrowed material , p. 1030Freund, 2014Freund, , p. 1357Burgess, 2017;Tushnet, 2007a, pp.…”

“…Their work suggests that remixers share both intuitions and misconceptions about relevant legal issues, and often turn to one another in online spaces for legal information Fiesler et al, 2015). Similarly, Freund (2014) investigated fan vidders' copyright literacy and experiences, finding that baseline knowledge of fair use was common. Freund's participants also experienced copyright complaints as a form of corporate bullying of second-generation fan creativity (Freund, 2014(Freund, , p. 1352; the vidders used a range of strategies to limit the likelihood of complaints or defend themselves in such cases.…”

“…Fiesler et al, 2015;; other fans indicate having professional legal experience or knowledge from working in fields like law, library and information science, or publishing (see e.g. ; see also Freund, 2014Freund, , p. 1352. The research also suggests that community norms are important in governing fans' behavior, and that norms overlap between individual fans, fan sites, and creators of different types of works , p. 1026; compare fan vidders in Freund, 2014;compare Hetcher, 2009;Tushnet, 2007a;Tushnet, 2007b).…”

“…Similarly, Fiesler and Bruckman found that their interview participants valued attribution highly, and assumed that fan disclaimers were more significant to fair use analyses than they are , p. 1030. The vidders Freund studied also employed disclaimers attributing source materials and explaining their intention not to infringe copyright, but rather to create a transformative work (Freund, 2014(Freund, , p. 1357. All pilot participants invoked the same community norm to include a disclaimer with their fan fiction, although they varied in how consistently they reported doing so.…”

“…Based on the literature, it was expected that fans would observe and follow social norms in fan communities, would turn to one another in fan spaces to answer legal questions Fiesler et al, 2015;, and would circulate norms and, potentially, legal information (and some misinformation) in laypersons' terms (Conti, 2017;Fiesler et al, 2015;Thompson, 2013). The literature also recognizes that some fans report having legal knowledge or experience from their professional lives (Fiesler et al, 2015; see also Freund, 2014Freund, , p. 1352. Nevertheless, other fans reported finding legal sources inaccessible, and turned to online forums for advice (Fiesler et al, 2015).…”