The popular open source tool youtube-dl no longer has a usable GitHub repository, at least for the time being: With a so-called DMCA takedown request against – alleged or actual – copyright infringements, the RIAA interest group of the US music industry has achieved that the source code of the project hosted on GitHub, including numerous forks, is no longer accessible. The command line program youtube-dl can be used to download content from streaming platforms such as Youtube.

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Also many forks blocked GitHub publishes the request (with omissions) as usual, in which in addition to the repository of ytdl-org also 17 Fork projects are listed that have also been blocked. The allegation is that the software was developed with the express aim of downloading YouTube videos, for example, which constitutes a copyright infringement, since the corresponding license for this content typically only allows streaming.

On the homepage of the You can currently only find repositories from youtube-dl on the DMCA takedown notice. The source code is not deleted – if it later turns out that the request was unauthorized, the content could be made accessible again. The software itself has not disappeared from the world, of course, the software can still be downloaded from the project website. ) The free and cross-platform availability (for Windows, Linux and macOS) and the concentration on the main task in the background have certainly contributed to the popularity of the helper software for media downloads, accordingly there are several graphical essays for operation and many forks. Originally youtube-dl was developed to work with Youtube, but hundreds of other platforms have been added over time. There are also reports that the maintainers of some forks are also said to have received a warning from the RIAA.

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