On the "3 strikes and you're out" YT system and the potential for DMCA abuse

This is probably one of those things that is interesting only to very few people but I read a few posts from several Youtubers and even developers over the last few days that theorized that the "3 strikes" system on Youtube would allow a group of 3 developers to conspire to take down any channel they didn't like, simply by each DMCAing a video of their game on that channel. While there absolutely is the potential for abuse of the DMCA to silence review and critique (though this has already been met with effective opposition every time it's happened), there is one fairly large fact that is being left out of that discussion.

Many channels on Youtube are actually not bound to the 3 strikes and you're out rules. Any channel that is part of a MCN or Multi-channel Network is put into one of 2 categories, affiliate partners and managed partners. Managed partner is the category we're interested in here. It has several benefits, not least of which is that the 3 strikes system for copyright infringement does NOT apply to managed channels. For a managed channel, the MCN assumes responsibility for the copyright strikes and not the channel. It's supposed to be a form of self-policing, where networks are held accountable for the actions of their partners, so they regulate those channels to make sure they're not breaking the law. In the case of managed channels, strikes count against the network and the network is capable of having a much larger number of strikes on its account than a channel is. The number varies but I've heard at minimum, 20 strikes is required to do any real damage. This is one of the reasons managed partnership is very desirable and almost every large gaming channel is a managed partner on Youtube unless they have elected to forgo being part of a network.

The thing about Pewdiepie is that he would be afforded this protection had he not been fired from Disneys network. While part of that network he was essentially immune to the effects of copyright strikes. Very strangely, the YT tracking website Socialblade, still indicates that Pewdiepie is actually part of Maker Studios networks and remains a managed partner. He may not have actually been truly "fired" from Maker at all, if that information is accurate (and it may not be). By getting himself fired from the network, he gave up the protection that would have then come in handy later against the Campo Santo DMCA takedown.

Just something to consider when bringing up the potential damage that DMCA claims can do and the possibility of using coordinate strikes to bring down channels. It is still very possible and the DMCA is certainly open to abuse, however in the case of most larger gaming channels, that would not work if they were under a managed partnership agreement. It is absolutely still a concern for smaller channels who are either not part of a network or affiliate partners with an MCN and we should remain vigilant for signs of abuse of the process, to remove videos that are critical of developers and publishers or serve a valid, academic purpose as outlined by the DMCAs Fair Use provisions.