Hasbro's Legal Team is Back on the Youtube Takedown Bandwagon

It seems even after over a decade of Youtube airing people's pony content, Hasbro is still the chaotic entity it always has been when it comes to what is and isn't allowed for pony.

This time around there have been multiple high profile takedowns, along with a few smaller creators. DWK, LittleshyFiM, and Tridashie have all been targeted, with several videos over on DWK's channel getting the boot, along with a crazy situation where one of Tridashie's Youtube Poops was removed, followed by LittleshyFiM getting an actual copyright takedown for featuring the video in the usual Top 10 Pony Videos we've posted for years.

When appealed, Hasbro straight up rejected it and refuses to respond with anything at all. Strikes aren't your usual takedown either. 3 of those and a channel is basically gone.

Many channels have started mirroring content elsewhere like Ponytube and even chinese site Bilibili, which Tridashie detailed in his recent release. 

Unfortunately all we can really do is wait and see where this goes. It could be staff swaps internally at Hasbro trying to prove themselves, a completely automated system (and considering how AI happy corporations are getting this wouldn't be surprising), or simply an error. Feel free to drop your theories below!

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Pony Tale Adventures Hit with a C&D From Hasbro

It looks like the Hasbro legal army has struck again. Another pony project has received the dreaded Cease and Desist. If you don't remember Pony Tale Adventures, it's essentially a dating sim for cartoon horses that we've been covering over the last few years. It has been one of the few out therer that regularly releases big updates, so it's super unfortunate to hear about a shutdown.

They are currently in talks with Hasbro to hopefully come up with some kind of licensing agreement as announced over on their Discord server, but for now all we can really do is wait and see what happens. Hasbro's legal side is known for being slow and difficult if the whole Jan Animations thing years ago is any indicaiton. Hopefully they've improved since then, but for now we can only watch.

I've included some screencaps below of their announcement. 

Beer Brewery Creates "Brony" Beer, Gets a C&D From Hasbro

(Image credit)

Something interesting apparently went down last month under the radar. A Company called "Illuminated Beer Works" brewed up what they call Brony Beer and had it on store shelves at a few places that carry various indie brands.

Apparently at some point, Hasbro got wind of it and as of 3 weeks ago, they received a C&D to stop selling it.

From the looks of it on their Instagram, they are going to go ahead and comply and stop selling it, but anything still on shelves is fair game. They are based in Chicago, so if you want to hunt it down, that might be a good place to start.

(Update: It's looking like they have removed Twilight Sparkle from the can and replaced it with a brony instead for future sales!)

Thanks to Dallin for the heads up. 

Season 8 Stuff Getting Nuked on Youtube, Including Stuff Before the Leak

After a... surprisingly long gap of time, the season 8 episodes and content over on Youtube have started getting nuked by Hasbro. Unfortunately this includes a few things that happened before the leak, including jokey speculation videos, fan made intros, and a few analysis videos.

Oddly enough, the channels that uploaded full episodes aren't being hit with actual strikes. The videos are simply being taken down. We have a theory on this one. It could be that Hasbro values these channels to advertise the show where Discovery Family fails. They do tend to get around 500k views in a day or two when episodes drop, and sometimes even upwards of a million.

That being said, it's still surprising to see very little in actual long-term consequences for posting full leaked episodes (Copyright Strikes). Either Hasbro is super chill about this stuff, or their legal team is slowly building a case behind the scenes for a big nuke for damages later on. I have a feeling this saga is far from over.

Thanks to Miak for the heads up. 

(New!) Twitter: Sethisto

Sony Has Started Revoking Content ID Claims on Remixes

With the release of the Pinkie Pie album, Content ID scooped up a boatload of pony songs that had bits and pieces from the songs included on it. The automated system  switches ads to send revenue directly to Sony as opposed to the actual musician that created them. Fortunately things seem to be reverting now! We've had a few reports come in that previously claimed remixes on Youtube are being freed up by Sony.

This seems to be a trend lately, and hopefully a sign that the days of copyright strikes on Youtube will soon be a thing of the past.

Thanks to Aurelleah, Zappatos, and Ryan for sending it!

(New!) Twitter: Sethisto

SME Targeting Songs From the "Pinkie's Party" Album on Youtube

Another round of copyright strikes are going out for anything involving the songs listed on the upcoming 15th of July "Pinkie's Party" album. Like most of the recent takedowns, this is most likely an automated system causing trouble and temporary, but if you want to fully protect your Youtube channels, it might be a good idea to remove any of the songs listed in that album.

If this follows the same path as the previous round, it will only last about a week before things get reverted on most (though not all) of fandom-built things. The actual songs themselves will most likely be shot though.

Thanks to RainShadow for the heads up!

(New!) Twitter: Sethisto

Pony Reaction Channels Are Currently Being Targeted by Copyright Strikes

It looks like another round of copyright strikes is going out over in Youtube land, with reaction channels taking the brunt of the attacks this time around. Quite a few in the reaction community have taken their videos offline to avoid marks on their accounts.

The claims are apparently being sent out by Discovery Family, with season 5 and Equestria Girls episodes taking the brunt. Chances are it's another update on Content ID causing the sudden wave, considering both of those are currently up on their official channels for purchase.

For now, if you or someone you know is using straight footage from episodes season 5, it might be a good idea to temporarily hide your videos until it blows over. There is a good chance this one will stick though. While Hasbro has been alright with posting clips and simply putting ads on them, full episodes on Youtube, regardless of reactions, tend to be nailed, unless they minimize footage or break it up enough to not trigger it.

Thanks to Yon for the heads up! A random list of youtubers effected have been listed below.

Youtube Copyright Woes - Magiepony's Video Stolen, then Copyright Claimed

Youtube's automated systems are once again causing trouble in ponyland. Brony Youtuber Magiepony recently had one of her Undertale songs stolen. The person that reuploaded then filed a copyright strike on her channel, saying it was theirs. Her channel has been locked to only allow videos of 15 minute duration.

As she points out in the video, Youtube really only ever notices these things if people make a fuss. So go do it!

You can find her explanation below the break.

Coco Pommel is No Longer "Coco" - Legal Reasons Force Change to "Miss Pommel"

Here's a weird one I don't think anyone expected. Coco Pommel has had her name officially changed to Miss Pommel. A tweet response from Big Jim confirmed it was due to legal issues. Considering her name was a parody on the famous Coco Chanel, I'm guessing someone in the labyrinth that is copyright and trademark law got rubbed the wrong way.

Expect future official appearances to be labeled as "Miss Pommel", though I'm sure that won't stop us from Cocoing freely.

Thanks to Miak for the heads up.

(New!) Twitter: Sethisto

Sony is Currently Taking Back the Claims on Remixes! - New Albums Officially Listed

Tons of people have emailed this one, and it's looking like the claims on the EQD Youtube channel are also back. Sony is starting to retroactively cancel its copyright strikes on various Youtube videos, returning them for all the world to see! It seems to be happening in waves, but a huge amount have already been returned.

This most likely had something to do with the new albums being added to their database of Content ID, and someone over at either Hasbro or Sony swooped in to save the pony remix scene. At least I like to think that's what happened! Complete with cape... and hat! Today is a good day.

You can grab the NEW albums over here to support this:


Friendship Is Magic: Songs of Harmony (Music from the Original TV Series)
Friendship Is Magic: Songs of Ponyville (Music from the Original TV Series)
Friendship Is Magic Collection

Vote with your wallets! It's not often a company takes back it's strikes like that.

Update: It looks like they unblocked it in a majority of previous countries. They seem to slowly be opening it up. 

Thanks to CMC Scootaloo, AstrumSpark, Chicago, and everyone else for the heads up! 

(New!) Twitter: Sethisto

Sony Rampaging Through Youtube with Copyright Claims on Remixes, and Anything with Pony Songs

Another era of copyright claims on Youtube has once again begun. Sony Music Entertainment (SME) is currently nailing tons of musicians and general Youtube channels with copyright claims on anything at all involving pony music. Not everything has been hit yet, but the claims are still continuing to build.

Here on EQD, Sony actually managed to claim the San Diego Comic Con panel from 2012 for an army of bronies singing the My Little Pony theme. Yeah, it goes that deep.

More below!

MisterDavie's Videos Are Back From Copyright Oblivion

Even if you are in the same boat as me, and absolutely despise ponies being mutilated, it's still never cool to see anything fan-made nailed with a copyright strike. Unlike the last few, this one cleared up amazingly quickly. All of MisterDavie's hyper-violent pony videos have been returned to Youtube for those of you that like this stuff.

I'll just be over here continuing to ignore them, but celebrating that animation lives again! (Now we just need Jan Animations back...)

Thaanks to Chicago and everyone else for the heads up!

(New!) Twitter: Sethisto

(Updated) FontBros Site Acknowledges Use of Generation B Before Lawsuit

(UPDATE: It's looking like this is a secondary URL that shows the missing My Little Pony point. A different live one has the message on it. Thanks to the sleuthing of Richfiles, it turns out that the message can still be viewed here. Still, it seems like FontBros has known about the font usage for a long time at this point.)

Thanks to some sleuthing by pony fans this interesting tidbit of information has popped up! Before the lawsuit news broke, on the FontBros page for Generation B they had a line reading 'Generation B is one of the official fonts used in the TV series My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic! Enjoy, my little Bronies!'

So apparently they have known that the font has been used for quite a long time so maybe it was only recently that they found out that the proper licenses weren't purchased. All we do know is that the line is no longer on their site and can only be found now using the Wayback Machine and other internet archive sources.

So what do you guys think?

Source from Wayback Machine

(UPDATE: It's looking like this is a secondary URL that shows the missing My Little Pony point. A different live one has the message on it) 

Twitter: Calpain

Hasbro Being Sued By "Font Bros America" For Potentially Pirated Font

A Company called Font Brothers America has filed a suit against Hasbro and the My Little Pony brand for the alleged usage of it's "Generation B" font. It is essentially what they have been using for Friendship is Magic since the beginning, making this a pretty major lawsuit covering a wide array of products.

The internet is abound with imagery of pirate ponies marking the occasion. What will it lead to though? Lets dig into some of the images Generation B is going after, and their overall plan below!

Mentally Advanced Series Nuked By Content ID Bomb

It looks like Content ID has claimed another pony Youtuber, with the Mentally Advanced Series being the most recent victim.  All of the videos are now under Youtube control as opposed to FiMFlamFilosophy.  This means the videos can no longer use adsense.  For a content creator, not being able to support yourself through your videos, animations, music, websites, ect. makes it difficult to keep working on it due to the time investment required (*cough* EQD included, dat adblock). 

A new video has been released by FiMFlamFilosophy detailing all of it. Hopefully they can get around the ID system for future videos. 

(Note: This is also pretty big since he uses screenshots instead of actual video for this series now, meaning content id may be expanding to simple images)

Thanks to David and Jimmy for sending it. 

Waiting is Magic Pulled from iTunes Store Due to C&D

Following the soundboards and other pony apps, it looks like another big one has bit the dust over on the iTunes store.  For those that never played it, Waiting is Magic was a popular game from a while back dedicated to bouncing a ball off a wall and the madness that follows that.  Apparently the takedown was due to a C&D according to the creator.  Fortunately it appears to still be up on the Android market, so if you want it, you should probably grab it before that one is axed too.

This is also a heads up to download and store any pony stuff you don't want to lose on there, as it looks like most of the non-official stuff is dropping off both Android and iTunes stores. 

Clarification on Jan Animation's Buttons Adventures 2 and Pony Rock

Earlier, we posted two animatics from Jan Animation's panel.  Unfortunately, it looks like they were both created pre-cease and desist, which means there are no guarantees that they will ever actually release. 

Exact note from Jan:

"We are still talking with Hasbro on the matter. As for now, the C&D remains valid. We hope to get to a final answer soon enough. Possibly something that will make us all happy.

In the meanwhile, I thank you all for your support.
Stay tuned,
Jan"

Hopefully good news from Hasbro's legal side pops up soon! Until then, we can only hope. 

Pony Music Getting Targeted with Anti-Monetization Copyright Claims

It looks like a new wave of copyright claim notices are happening these last few months on Youtube.  Instead of the straight up take downs, pony music is being marked with something that removes their ads, and replaces them with ones that send the money earned to Hasbro instead of the musician behind it.  If you want an example, check out this page. Both adsense and a link back to the Hasbro Studios Youtube Page are running at the same time after it was targeted with a claim.  This is something that began hitting the "Lets Play" gaming community a few months ago, and is slowly making the rounds to just about everything else.

So far, it looks like only the videos with a pony image are being nailed.  The automated program they use sniffs for copywritten images, video, and audio on things that are reported.  There is a catch though; these images are including fan art and heavily photoshopped silhouettes like this one.  Content ID is either getting incredibly smart, or notices are actually coming from Legal teams (Youtube or Hasbro).  At first glance those Pinkie Pie's look more like octopuses than a pony. Fan art is especially surpising, as most of it isn't comprised of vectors ripped from the show and in a unique style a bot could never pick up.  

For now, if you plan to upload music, it might be best to avoid using an actual pony image. While not everything is getting the axe, a good enough amount is. Hasbro's legal side works in mysterious ways, and in complete silence, so it's best to cover all of your bases and try to avoid them in any way you can. 

"Brony" Being Blocked by Zazzle for Infringement Claims by Hasbro

Another oddity has popped up in the Intellectual Property world of pony. While none of this has yet been confirmed by Hasbro, it looks like the self-print merchandise website Zazzle is now blocking things with the term "Brony" in the tags. The mother of Mandopony released a string of tweets detailing her experience with this new policy change after her products were pulled without any sort of reason.

Head on down below for the details!

MLP: Online Shuts Down Due to Legal Issues

It looks like that unfortunate US Trademark law has reared it's ugly head once again. MLP: online was hit with a request to take down their game a few weeks ago after releasing their first episode, and unfortunately had to comply.

As noted in their release, this isn't technically Hasbro's fault.  Due to specific requirements when dealing with their trademark, they are forced to  take down things that violate it, or they lose it.  I do wonder how that pertains to other games though, or what causes a legal team to "notice" something.  There are quite a few of them out there, many of which are heavily advertised on the ponynets.

Have the exact announcement released today after the break, or hit it up here!