Copyright Alliance spotlight on content theft of chaser footage

[Warren Faidley]

Warren, you’re sitting on a gold mine of content and compelling stories from your career. It’s just a matter of getting that in a form of something that appeals to the masses. Try reaching out to some producers, I think even some big names would be interested in working with you on that. Of course it’s all up to you if you want to pursue it or not, just don’t let the myth that there is nothing to be made from it stop you.

Thanks Dan, very much appreciated. Trust me, I've tried to package my content into something marketable for the past 20+ years, especially after Storm Chasers and the evolution of social media. The problem is most of my footage falls on the "artsy," creative and reality sides of the chasing spectrum. Modern social media interests demand insanity and death defying stunts based mostly on entertainment value. Substance or reality is no longer a priority for the majority of viewers (e.g., Twisters).

As for income, I know a lot of people are making money on social media, and some by abusing copyrights, but how many people are making big profits within the specialized world of storm chasing? I cannot believe there are that many? Obviously, Reed is king of social media chasing, but I'm not aware of other chasers raking in massive income, of at least $50k per year. Where are you getting this data? Are there any references to their sites where we can see their followings and calculate income? I'm talking about chasers, not the non-chasing © abusers.

 

[Dan Robinson]

Warren, that's the good side of the internet right now. You can economically publish straight to the viewer without having to go through the bureaucracies of traditional media. You could try hiring a freelance video editor to put something together relatively cheaply, just to try some ideas.

My ENG/stock revenue peaked in 2004-2005. I've had a few out of the past 10 years where Youtube alone equaled what I made those years, that's *with* all of the piracy. If I could just cut the piracy in half, I could easily do this full time (meaning full health/disabilty insurance, 401k fund, everything).

Blake, you're right about it being a fickle income. Even without the piracy, it would be something I would expect to eventually go away. But without the piracy, I could nearly retire on the money my content has made if I had got my share of what all the platforms already made on it.

 

[Blake Naftel]

Thanks Dan, very much appreciated. Trust me, I've tried to package my content into something marketable for the past 20+ years, especially after Storm Chasers and the evolution of social media. The problem is most of my footage falls on the "artsy," creative and reality sides of the chasing spectrum. Modern social media interests demand insanity and death defying stunts based mostly on entertainment value. Substance or reality is no longer a priority for the majority of viewers (e.g., Twisters).

As for income, I know a lot of people are making money on social media, and some by abusing copyrights, but how many people are making big profits within the specialized world of storm chasing? I cannot believe there are that many? Obviously, Reed is king of social media chasing, but I'm not aware of other chasers raking in massive income, of at least $50k per year. Where are you getting this data? Are there any references to their sites where we can see their followings and calculate income? I'm talking about chasers, not the non-chasing © abusers.

YouTube as a platform only works when you have the favor of the algorithm amidst millions of other videos, a firm following, coder friends in the industry who bank your success and can easily shutter others in the process. The factors that determine "success" are broad, nor are they merely monetary in nature. Social media and certainly the material we all have documented over the years is not the gold mine you, Dan or others may think it is, but this is not to detract from our original public discussion, as anyone earning anything on what they personally enjoy legally doing is fine! History is wrought ill gotten gains, "copyright pirates" and so fourth. Those factors will never go away. When material in whatever form a person or company produces gets successful and eventually "repurposed" for another individual or corporations gain, that's when ego gets bruised, anger flares up, lawyers get called and then look out, people take to the forums, social media, or public meetings to unload.

What modern financially inclined "storm chasers" as a whole need to recognize is that the atmospheric material documented is very momentary, has a niche audience post the 1995-1997 and later 2008-2011 booms, and is not as in demand as we may occasionally trick ourselves into believing. Historical material however is more so, and that is merely because there is less stock material for producers to work with. All in all, it's just the weather. Natural disasters happen every single day, as do photographs, stories, production series ideas, and so forth. The headlines pile up and blur by. If you can support yourself on "the weather" legally, then do so and appreciate the very brief moment you have in doing so.

Blake


BLAKE WILLIAM NAFTEL
Artist, Comedy Writer, Meteorologist

616.643.7762
blakenaftel.com
threereelfilms.com

 

[Blake Naftel]

Warren, that's the good side of the internet right now. You can economically publish straight to the viewer without having to go through the bureaucracies of traditional media. You could try hiring a freelance video editor to put something together relatively cheaply, just to try some ideas.

My ENG/stock revenue peaked in 2004-2005. I've had a few out of the past 10 years where Youtube alone equaled what I made those years, that's *with* all of the piracy. If I could just cut the piracy in half, I could easily do this full time (meaning full health/disabilty insurance, 401k fund, everything).

Blake, you're right about it being a fickle income. Even without the piracy, it would be something I would expect to eventually go away. But without the piracy, I could nearly retire on the money my content has made if I had got my share of what all the platforms already made on it.

Dan, relax, but never retire!


BLAKE WILLIAM NAFTEL
Artist, Comedy Writer, Meteorologist

616.643.7762
blakenaftel.com
threereelfilms.com