YouTube: EU Court rules that Google can be held liable for videos posted by partner creators

The neutrality of the hosting provider ends where content curation, channel control and revenue sharing begin.

With a ruling set to affect the scope of liability of major digital platforms, the Court of Justice of the European Union has ruled that Google may be held liable for videos published on YouTube by a creator with whom it has entered into a commercial partnership, when the platform operator does not merely fulfil a technical role but acquires concrete knowledge of the content.

This is the principle established by the Court of Justice of the European Union in Case C-421/24, which arose from the €750,000 fine imposed in 2022 by AGCOM on Google Ireland for 630 videos promoting online gaming and betting on YouTube, in breach of the ‘Dignity’ Decree.

The Court draws a clear distinction between two levels. On the one hand, it confirms that the activity of video hosting remains subject to the E-Commerce Directive even when the content concerns advertising for gambling; on the other hand, it specifies that the exemption from liability provided for in Article 14 does not apply if the platform plays an active role. This occurs when, in order to conclude or manage a commercial agreement with the creator, it examines the channel’s theme, the most-viewed or most recent videos and the relevant metadata, thereby acquiring knowledge of the content that is incompatible with the role of a neutral intermediary.

According to Massimiliano Capitanio, an AGCOM commissioner, the ruling states that Google ‘may be held liable for videos published on YouTube when it does not merely host them but selects, monitors and monetises them”. The Commissioner summarises this conclusion by referring to ‘editorial responsibility’.