TV9 is a broadcast network from India which runs multiple YouTube channels, including this one focused on the US market.
Associate Broadcasting Limited, which runs India’s largest television and digital channel TV9, filed a suit for injunction against tech giant Google over a threat of their YouTube channels being taken down over copyright strikes on January 5.
Google owns video streaming platform YouTube. The YouTube copyright strike is a policing practice used by the video streaming app for the purpose of managing copyright infringement. If a user gets three copyright strikes in 90 days, their account, along with any associated channels, are terminated and, as a result of this, they lose their entire subscriber base built over the years.
The court agreed to consider the plea for interim injunction and posted the case for hearing in March after seeking Google’s response. The case raises an important question on whether Indian courts have the power to injunct a YouTube channel being taken down when a party from the US issues a copyright strike.
According to what transpired in the court, between 2020 and 2023, the TV9 YouTube channel disseminated news pertaining to various events from across the world, including hurricanes, floods and other natural and manmade disasters including the Gaza war. However, TV9 was issued the copyright strike alleging that some footage they used belonged to a party in the US.
No responses yet