Twitch has launched a sweeping new measure to clamp down on the use of unlicensed music in videos.
The video streaming service, which is particularly popular with gamers, is partnering with Audible Magic to scan its library of recorded material. When a piece of licensed music is detected, the audio for an entire 30 minute block surrounding the hot snippet is forcibly muted.
Interestingly, it seems as if that music can come from any source within the video. It can be part of the game that's being recorded, in the background of the broadcast itself, or even sung by the broadcaster.
Of course, Twitch is best known for its live video broadcasts, and these will remain unaffected by the clampdown.
As for recorders put out by this new measure, Twitch recommends that you source your music from the Creative Commons, Jamendo, or SongFreedom if you don't want your footage to be censored.
There's also an appeals process whereby copyright owners and those who feel they have been unjustly muted can file a "counter-notification" with Twitch.
All in all, this appears to be an attempt on Twitch's part to pre-empt any potential legal challenges from copyright owners. With a $1 billion acquisition by YouTube said to have been agreed, it can also be seen as Twitch cleaning house before its new masters arrive.
In a separate announcement, Twitch also revealed that it was dropping the ability to select "save forever" on old broadcasts. This is in order to channel that capacity towards increasing the amount of time broadcasts are stored by default from three to 14 days.
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