If you are looking to have a YouTube copyright / third party content match notice removed from your YouTube video or channel, you can skip ahead to the instructions on this page, or fill out and submit a special form here for assistance in resolving the issue.

What Is Content ID?

Content ID refers to the technology of digitally fingerprinting content, in this case music, for recognition and tracking across YouTube (and places that YouTube content is used and embedded). Without digital fingerprinting, tracking legal and illegal use of copyrighted digital content would be next to impossible.

What is AdRev?

AdRev is a YouTube partner platform (yet is it’s own company) that utilizes digital fingerprinting technology and YouTube’s Content ID system to track, manage and administer copyrighted material on behalf of content creators and copyright holders.

AdRev provides its users with various tracking reports and tools to clear any erroneous claims made against a YouTube video, as well as options to deal with illegal uses like displaying ads over videos (where the revenue is then paid to the copyright holder) or removing the content all together.

Why am I receiving a message that my video has “matched third party content”?

If your video has been identified as matching third party content or “flagged” as it’s often called, please do not worry or panic. This is simply a message and layer of security that YouTube uses to communicate that it has noticed you are using music with a copyright belonging to myself or King’s Crown Productions. A flag is not to be confused with a “strike” which is when action has been taken against your account to forcefully remove content that has been illegally used. While a strike will negatively affect your account, a flag or notice will not.

All videos that match third party content are immediately flagged because YouTube doesn’t yet know that you have the rights to use it legally. They do know that is has a claimed copyright however.

It’s important to note that while a video is flagged, monetization of ads will be disabled for that video. Ads may still run, however to receive money collected during a run period the video needs to be “cleared”.

If you have purchased a license from AudioJungle or King’s Crown Productions for use and monetization on YouTube, there is a quick and easy way to let YouTube know that you do in fact have the rights to use it. Once the process is completed, the message will be removed and the video will be cleared for monetization.

How do I remove the “matched third party content” YouTube notice?

Removing a flag or “matched third party content” notice from your video is a quick process, and can be done one of three ways:

1.) Clearing a video through AdRev Directly:

The most simple and quick method of clearing a video is through AdRev’s claims clearance website form. By submitting your info and license to AdRev directly, videos are often cleared in less than 24 hours, and you will receive a conformation e-mail from them once the process is complete. In the message portion of the form, please list where you have purchased your license and include the text details of the license itself by copying and pasting information.

2.) Clearing a video through your YouTube account, using the built in form :

Being logged into your account, navigate to the video manager tab of the creator studio section. Next to your video you will notice that there is a “matched third party content” link. Follow that link. Next click the link that says “file a dispute”, select the radio box “I have a license or written permission from the proper rights holder to use this material”, and click continue. You will now be asked to briefly explain in writing the selection you just made.

In this message box, we recommend you enter the following statement, followed by the text from your license:

I have purchased a license to use the song “Title Of Song” by Tim McMorris from the website “audioJungle.net [OR] kingscrownproductions.com“, and have the right to use the song on YouTube. I am pasting my license information below as proof:

* paste license info here *

Once the message box is filled, submit the form and you’re done! Claims using the YouTube form are usually cleared within 24 – 96 hours.

3.) Clearing a video directly through this website

If you would like assistance with clearing a third party content notice from your YouTube video a special form has been created on this site to help! Simply fill out the form and send us the required information and the clearing claim will be filed on your behalf.

Where can I locate the license I need to clear music using AdRev/YouTube/timmcmorris.com?

Once logged in, licenses from audiojungle.net can be downloaded from the downloads page and licenses from kingscrownproductions.com can be downloaded under the my account section.

Is there a way I can pre-clear a video before it goes live, or my YouTube channel entirely?

Yes, both can be done!

Pre-clearing a video

When you are uploading a video to YouTube, you have the option to set it as “unlisted”. When you select this option, the video is uploaded and a YouTube link will be generated, but the video will not yet be “live” for your subscribers to see. The video also will not posted to your channel.

After refreshing the video manager page, the matching third party content notice will display. Follow the instructions above on how to remove the notice, and wait for the notice to be disappear in the video manager. Once the notice is removed, switch your video to public, and you will be collecting monetized views (if you have it enabled) from the very beginning without interruption.

Pre-clearing your entire YouTube channel

If you have licensed at least three of my songs previously you are eligible to have your entire channel white-listed from Content ID.

If you meet the minimum three song criteria and would like to pre-clear your entire YouTube channel (future uploads will not need to cleared individually and you won’t receive the “matched third party content” notices) please fill out and submit this form. Please be aware that channels cannot have existing unresolved Content ID claims.

Why I Decided To Start Using Content ID

For a long time I measured the pros and cons of using content ID on my music and could not make up my mind. The major con was that all of the music I had previously licensed to users on YouTube would have to get re-cleared by each licensee. As not everyone is familiar with the process, I was very concerned about the extra frustration it would easily cause as a notice popped up on each person’s YouTube account. While it’s just a notice (not to be confused with a strike against an account) I feared it would cause undue panic to customers.

Due to one unfortunate event however, I found myself heavily in favor of registering my music. I had discovered that another company had been fraudulently claiming my music. I received a flood of e-mails about a notice on a particular song and I had no idea what was going on. Customers were trying to clear their music through this site, but as neither myself or King’s Crown Productions had actually registered the music, we could not clear claims.

The only way to remedy the situation and to avoid future problems was to register my material with AdRev. This move ensured 1.) That my work would be protected against infringement 2.) That no other person or entity could be claiming my work elsewhere and 3.) That I had access to the tools needed to assist customers with the timely clearance of rightfully licensed music.

While I understand that this will add an extra step to using a song on YouTube, I believe it is a necessary step, and one that protects your investment in my music, protects YouTube from legal consequences, and protects my musical copyright.

If you have any more questions about anything in this articles please feel free to contact me.