Hey - been looking for an answer to this across various official sites/forums etc and not seeing it. I also sent in an email asking, but I figured I would drop the question here…
What is the policy regarding monetization of Stonehearth videos?
If there is a link to a statement about this that would be great, or it could be answered here if it is known but not yet stated, etc.
I have a channel myself, and already have a Stonehearth video up (non-monetized as I don’t do that without knowing for sure). I have a feeling I’m asking this question for a number of others as well, for those making videos now and in the future.
Absolutely no problem, in the latest stream, Tom mentioned that they not only didn’t care if you made videos, but they actively enjoyed it. He also said they didn’t care if you monetize it, they certainly aren’t going to come after you. So go nuts!
My assumption was that this was the case, but with the Youtube changes recently, people like myself are looking for something we can point to as evidence online, like a statement of policy, etc. Seems like that may not be the case yet (it’s something that devs are starting to do, but still a new concept to many).
I developed a game (called “Epic Inventor”) and it was not something I considered at the time, until I started making videos regularly. Now we have an official statement on our site allowing for monetization, etc.
Anyway, I will keep an eye out (and keep an eye on this post as well) to see if anything more officially stated becomes available at some point.
Does the stream I linked where Tom, one of the developers and founders of Radiant Entertainment officially says that you’re fine to monetise not count as official?
The thing is, Youtube does not say - and these are manually checked. So, will a 53 minute video be watched is the real question. The answer is probably, no. A brief statement on a site has proven to be enough though.
At some point, something will work (a statement, or link to a Tweet stating such) and future videos of the game will not likely have issues. I went ahead and submitted that I do indeed “have permission” along with a link to the video but we’ll see.
There is also a large list that covers ““Let’s Play”-friendly developers” like the following, which is an indication of where we are at these days (as far as needing to have pretty explicit permission, etc)…
Well, if I just call in @sdee, perhaps she wouldn’t mind just giving you literal permission regarding the monetisation of it, so we’re super clear and I can then quote it for any future askers?
It’s been a big thing recently, if you follow Youtube happenings (especially in the last few months). Some major changes have occurred making these kinds of things an issue when it previously was not (not as big of an issue anyway).
Thanks Skull24, I did see those (I was searching for this stuff today before making this post) but those don’t…
Refer to monetization
Quote the source directly
The thread you are referring to also seems to indicate you (and others) were looking to put together an example statement. The following statement for the game “Warframe” is widely regarded as being a really great/elegant way of stating it, covering what needs to be covered without it being too long, and on a dedicated page for the topic, etc…
This is something that is very important and requires the permissions in the correct format.
Im holding off doing any youtube videos of this great game until its cleared up.
This has to either be individual permissions given each time someone asks
Youtubes states
"-explicit permission to use the rights holder’s content commercially (example: “I, rights holder’s name, give your name or channel’s name, the right to use my original content commercially.”)
-electronic signature with date (this can be as simple as the rights holder writing out full name at the bottom of the document)"
This is definitely something the Devs need to provide a written clarification on specifically dealing with monetization - I had mentioned it in passing a while back but wasn’t quite sure what the changes meant at the time.
@weemcast and @waddymc thanks for linking those pages and bringing this up - I’m sure someone will be along at some point over the next day or so to provide some clarification!
Yarrrr. Looking into it. Our official policy, till we have a better worded statement, is that yes, you can absolutely make videos of Stonehearth and monetize them. Everyone should be rewarded for their hard work.
@sdee I have asked this before, but recieved no answer… Actually I don’t know if it matters for me, because with (at the moment) less than 500 subscribers I don’t monetize my videos. But does this policy include the music as well?
A common video style I do is that I disable the music in game, record the session, edit the video to be played in higher pace (I call it speedplay), and add the music on the side (and post commentary of course). This means that the music will be almost untouched - so it has to be free to use with the video for this method to be accepted I guess. It is quite different from what most Youtubers do, since they talk on top of the music and sound. Hard to explain, but check the link for clarification if needed: Speedplay example
Thanks, just wanted to have that clarified since all info from before have only been about the gameplay footage and not about the music (blended with speech or more-or-less-untouched)
I submitted my video for monetization using the Stream video as my “permission” (before the statement was posted/linked above). That ended up coming back to me saying they needed something else. It was at that time, earlier today, I posted a link to the new statement and my video was approved about 20 minutes later!
I thought I would relay that (along with my thanks again) to illustrate how much these things help us do what we do, especially now. Thanks for the rapid response/solution!
