Garry Newman, the creator of Garry's Mod, reportedly received a DMCA takedown notice concerning unauthorized Skibidi Toilet content within the game. The situation is shrouded in uncertainty, with the true source of the notice remaining unclear.
The Alleged DMCA Notice
On July 30th, a copyright claim was issued, demanding the removal of Skibidi Toilet-related Garry's Mod creations. The sender asserted that no official Skibidi Toilet content exists within the Steam, Valve, or Garry's Mod ecosystem.
Initially, suspicion fell upon Invisible Narratives, the studio behind the Skibidi Toilet movie and TV franchises. However, this claim has been refuted by a Discord profile seemingly belonging to the Skibidi Toilet creator, who denies sending the DMCA, as reported by Dexerto.
The Ironic Twist
The Skibidi Toilet YouTube series, created by Alexey Gerasimov (DaFuq!?Boom!), utilizes assets from Garry's Mod, ported into Source Filmmaker. The series' immense popularity spawned merchandise and plans for a movie and TV series. The irony is striking: the very content claiming copyright infringement originated from the platform it now targets.
Counterarguments and Responses
Newman publicly shared the DMCA notice on the s&box Discord server, highlighting its unexpected nature. Invisible Narratives' notice claimed copyright ownership over characters like Titan Cameraman, Titan Speakerman, Titan TV Man, and Skibidi Toilet. They cited DaFuq!?Boom! as the original source of these characters.
This claim is particularly contentious given Garry's Mod's own reliance on Valve's Half-Life 2 assets, a situation Valve has implicitly approved by publishing the game. Valve, as the original copyright holder, arguably possesses a stronger claim than Invisible Narratives.
Following Newman's disclosure, DaFuq!?Boom! also took to Discord to deny involvement, expressing confusion and a desire to clarify the situation with Newman.
The DMCA notice was purportedly filed "on behalf of copyright holder: Invisible Narratives, LLC," citing copyright registration in 2023 for "Titan Cameraman and 3 Other Unpublished Works."
While DaFuq!?Boom!'s denial remains unverified, this isn't their first encounter with copyright disputes.
Previous Copyright Conflicts
DaFuq!?Boom! previously issued copyright strikes against other YouTube channels, including GameToons, leading to a temporary conflict eventually resolved through an undisclosed agreement.
The situation surrounding the Garry's Mod DMCA remains unresolved, highlighting the complexities and ambiguities of copyright claims in the digital age, especially concerning derivative works and the evolution of online memes.
