LOS ANGELES -- Now it's The Fine Brothers who are having to react.
The duo behind the hugely popular "React" videos is licensing the brand to other creators, and #TeamInternet is divided. Or maybe just a little confused about what the deal actually means for them.
[seealso URL="http://mashable.com/2016/01/26/fine-bros-react-videos"]
The YouTube duo's five-year-old Entertainment's REACT channel, which has about 5.7 million followers, will give creators worldwide access to 11 of its various shows and trademarks including "Kids React," "Teens React," "Elders React," "Adults React," "React Gaming" and more, Fine Brothers Entertainment announced earlier this week. The company emphasized that the goal of the initiative, backed by YouTube, is to help creators.
But some YouTubers feel the "React" brand is not theirs to license -- viewing it as an attempt to claim profits over every "reaction" video out there. In a Reddit thread that began Thursday afternoon, one user pointed out what they thought was the underlying issue:
The post ignited a thread of haters, defenders and overall discussion about whether what Fine Brothers Entertainment is doing is fair.
One user wrote: "While we have no problem with people making money off of their videos, this type of shady, third-party licensing has caused massive issues for us and led to it being banned entirely."
Not so, says Fine Brothers Entertainment -- the content studio and hybrid network started by brothers Benny and Rafi Fine, has over 20 million subscribers across its YouTube channels and generates over 150 million monthly views.
Noticing the backlash, the duo responded by tweeting, commenting on their YouTube video, joining the Reddit thread and finally opening up the discussion to Facebook.
We're not saying we hold a copyright on reaction videos overall, no one can. We're licensing our specific shows, like TV has done for years.— thefinebros (@thefinebros) January 28, 2016
Comment from discussion The Fine Bros from Youtube are now attempting to copyright "reaction videos" (something that has existed before they joined youtube) and are claiming that other reaction videos are infringing on their intellectual property.
They cleared up a lot of questions -- but the main point they wanted to make was that people are confusing the show's format with "general reaction videos."
"People can most definitely make shows where kids or elders etc. react to videos, the protectable elements are the trademark (the title itself of the video) and specific elements that make a likelihood of confusion that you are watching someone's established show -- but this does not at all mean people can't make a show with generations reacting to things."
The duo promised they will "not be trying to take revenue from other types of reaction videos, and will not be copyright-striking."
Their full response is available in the Reddit thread here and on their Facebook page.