While game and media soundtracks are often the go-to for YouTube creators when making videos and content, some companies do enforce their copyrights over music, and this seems to be the case with Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us TV series soundtrack.
- Related Reading: The Last of Us HBO Episode 5 Review: The New Bar
Creators on YouTube are receiving content blocks that prevent them from keeping their gameplay videos uploaded, which also affects their overall revenue. Here’s an example from Speclizer’s YouTube channel, who you may remember from a recent Bella Ramsey mod video last month.
About 40-50 videos of mine just got striked for using TLOU music, it's crazy that you can't even upload a playthrough without it being striked now. Guess I need to be extremely careful with having any TLOU music in my TLOU videos… 😭#TheLastOfUs pic.twitter.com/LHGw6lfx80
— Speclizer (@Speclizer_) February 25, 2023
Speclizer also stated the following in a reply to this tweet:
Dude I’ve had to either mute music or add different music I’m telling you they update the tracks for the show and changed the copyright system for it!
The content blocks are likely due to the HBO TV series version of The Last of Us, which uses the same music. Content blocks are nothing new in YouTube, and there are quite a few companies with a history of being pretty stingy with their music and soundtrack copyrights, such as Nintendo, who apparently issued around 4,000 copyright strikes to a single YouTube channel last year (via VGC).
Unless Naughty Dog comes forward and makes a statement on the matter, creators may be better off using other video game soundtracks to add to their videos for the time being.