Study on the Copyright Law of Short Video "Handling" Phenomenon

Abstract

As the speed of mobile transmission continues to escalate, in the era of information explosion, the use of short videos as a carrier to record daily life entertainment has gradually become mainstream. However, under the evolution of capital marketization, the economic attributes of short videos have gradually become obvious, and the success of Li Ziqi's video commercial operation has further promoted the rapid development of the short video industry. In this paper, we first analyse whether the disputed short videos meet the criteria of work composition from the perspective of the basis of copyright rights. As China's copyright has not yet made specific provisions for short videos in relation to the classification of works, it is necessary to explore what criteria short videos need to meet in order to constitute "audiovisual" works. Secondly, this article focuses on the main elements of infringement in short-form video infringement disputes, and thus in determining whether a short-form video constitutes a work, more emphasis should be placed on the three characteristics of audience appreciation and response, original expression and specificity of plot. The possible infringement situations of short video works are divided, and the boundaries between the obligations of short video platforms and the fair use of other users are explored from the perspective of the common infringing subjects in infringement disputes. On this basis, we analyse the types and modes of existing regulatory instruments of short-form video copyright law, and provide a theoretical basis for later proposing the standards and obligations of different subjects in determining short-form video infringement. Finally, on the basis of the existing means of regulation, new suggestions for regulation are explored, i.e. the scope of indirect and direct infringement liability of short video platforms should be expanded, and short video infringement should be regulated from the process of production, review, dissemination and reproduction, requiring higher platform liability. As far as other users are concerned, the whole-process fair use standard should be adopted to determine whether infringement of another's work is constituted, with emphasis on the impact caused by the user to the original creator in the actual use.