Copyright holders must take into account fair use defenses before demanding that services such as YouTube take down unauthorized content, the Ninth Circuit ruled Monday.
But in a break for the recording and motion picture industries, the court further ruled that copyright owners will not be subject to damages, if they acted in good faith. Meeting that standard will not typically require a “searching or intensive” review of fair use law, Judge Richard Tallman wrote for a 2-1 majority in Lenz v. Universal Music.
