Can I create trailers for my YouTube videos using iMovie trailer templates? And are they eligible for YouTube monetisation?

Hi,

Copyright  and license laws can be a briar patch.  You should contact an intellectual property attorney for a definitive answer to your question.  My comments below are for information purposes only and are not intended to be legal advice and should not be relied upon as such.

In addition to the copyright laws there's also  the requirements of the iMovie license that govern your rights.

 Apple has a Legal-Contact Us website where you can inquire about copyright and license issues.  Here's a link to the site:

Legal - Contact Us - Apple 

Generally speaking, monetization is one of the basic copyright violations, unless authorized by the applicable license.  Take a look at Paragraphs 2F and 2G of the iMovie license agreement.  To access the license agreement, open iMovie and click on iMovie/About iMovie/License Agreement.

What you might try is to choose a trailer template that you are thinking of using, insert a couple of clips into it, and upload it to You Tube.  See if it gets flagged for copyright.   If it gets flagged, you will usually be presented with conditions upon which the material may be used.  Often, but not always, monetary use is prohibited.  Sometimes the holder of the copyright will grant unlimited use, or perhaps restrict it's use to a specified region, such as the United States.   I've sometimes seen an attribution requirement.  You would need to decide if you wish to accept the conditions.  In my experience, the claims have pertained to the audio portion of the video, so perhaps switching out the audio would eliminate the claim.  Also, I believe there is a You Tube procedure for contesting the copyright claim, if you want to try that route. 

-- Rich

You may create trailers & other videos for personal use, not for commercial use, aka "monetization."

There are are least 2 restrictions in the iMovie Software License Agreement (there may be more):

pp. 2 (i). Permitted License Uses and Restrictions -> "to download, install, use and run for personal, non-commercial use, one (1) copy of the Apple Software directly on each Apple-branded computer running macOS (“Mac Computer”) that you own or control;"

pp. F (ii). Content and Digital Materials -> "you may not use, extract or distribute, commercially or otherwise,

on a standalone basis, any photographs, images, graphics, artwork, audio, video or similar assets

(“Digital Materials”) contained within, or provided as a part of, the Apple Software, or otherwise use the

Digital Materials outside the context of its intended use as part of the Apple Software"

Just because YouTube didn't catch you (yet) on the use/copyright issue doesn't mean you are in the clear.

Nobody can be sure of anything when it comes to intellectual property laws, until a court says it’s O.K. It’s complicated. As I said, I am not expressing a legal opinion, and cannot say whether you will be O.K. That’s why I suggested that you upload a sample trailer with personal content to see what happens. That you have not received any claims, so far, is encouraging but no guarantee that you won’t receive a claim in the future.

There are always questions. Does publishing on social media violate the “personal use” restriction of the license? Is “royalty free” the same as “copyright free”. And so on.

You might check with Apple’s legal website for further info.

— Rich

cristiano.seven wrote:

I agree what you say but at the same time I also believe you are not sure.

I believe because I have my own videos in it, it went through without any copyright issues. 

I am sure about my reading of the license.

Please carefully re-read the sections I quoted. pp. F(ii) clearly states that the 'Digital Materials' contained within iMovie (which btw includes the embedded trailer templates) may not be used "outside the context of its intended use as part of the Apple Software" which is, according to pp. 2(i), specifically for personal, non-commercial use.

Adding footage to a trailer template does not negate the license restrictions on the "Digital Materials." By adding your own original content to an iMovie trailer you are creating a derivative work, not a unique work that you are the sole owner of. Apple owns the original work (eg. the templates) and only authorizes you to use them for personal, non-commercial use. "Royalty free" only means that you are not charged any royalties for using the "Digital Assets;" it does not mean you are free to use them outside the limits of the license.

In the end, users are only licensed to use iMovie for personal, non-commercial uses. Using it for any commercial use is a violation of the license.

You are welcome to parse your answers from here:

https://images.apple.com/legal/sla/docs/iMovie.pdf

The license for GB loops is really easy compared to this!

Copyright is not equal to licensing.

Don't bother to argue, we gave our advice - such as its worth, if you feel differently, go ahead, you don't need to convince us.