Medium Terms Of Service Have Changed Radically
It’s important not to ignore these facts. Here’s what you need to know.
UPDATE: Medium changed their new TOS. A little. Here’s the latest on the new TOS fiasco.
And there’s some more bad news. Coincidentally on the same day of the TOS fiasco, this happened:
By now you probably know that Medium will radically alter its terms of service, from 1st September 2020.
Forgive me, fellow traveller, for the flurry of articles on this subject. It was a shock to the system, it took me some time to process the information, question it, then decide to act upon it.
Yesterday, a pop up appeared very briefly on my screen saying something about new terms of service. Instead of taking me to the new TOS it disappeared when I clicked it. So I went hunting. This was the result.
Despite their soothing noises to the contrary, this paragraph makes a huge difference to how Medium can treat your work:
“Unless otherwise agreed in writing, by submitting, posting, or displaying content on or through the Services, you grant Medium a nonexclusive, royalty-free, worldwide, fully paid, and sublicensable license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, publicly perform and display your content and any name, username or likeness provided in connection with your content in all media formats and distribution methods now known or later developed without compensation to you.”
Note the important words “in all media formats and distribution methods now known or later developed without compensation to you.”
ADDENDUM 2 20/8/2020: It has been drawn to my attention that the word Sublicense is also very important. Sublicense means an agreement in which a Company grants or otherwise transfers any of the rights licensed to Company hereunder or other rights that are relevant to designing, developing, testing, making, using, or selling of Licensed Products.
So, when you take into account their brand new right to sublicense your work and their statement “on all media formats and distribution methods now known or later developed without compensation to you.” there can no longer any doubt. The new TOS mean what we feared. Medium can use your work without your permission and they do not have to compensate you for it outwith the partner program pennies.
Soothing words don’t override TOS
Medium emails and articles on the site telling you to hush, it’s fine, don’t fret pet, do not mean more than their Terms of Service. Pay attention.
I emailed Medium support yesterday and received a fluffy reply almost exactly like the one Charles Roast received and discusses here.
Their reply didn’t address at all the contentious paragraph. I wrote back about 7 hours ago and asked them the following questions. So far, crickets.
- So what you are saying then is that if you later develop a Medium platform of some kind, say Medium streaming or Medium news, you can take chunks of my work, amend my work in any way you like and not pay me for it. In all media formats and distribution methods now known or later developed means you can hack up my content up and distribute it, edit it, otherwise use it, without paying me a cent. Correct or incorrect?
- I might own my own work, but you have copyright and licensing rights to do whatever you want to my content.
- Can I get a refund on my subscription for the rest of the year since you have radically altered the terms and conditions I agreed to when I paid for it? (This question was just to be difficult, my partnership earnings covered the year’s subscription long ago).
Go to the source
As I couldn’t get a reply by email, I have been dropping comments all over the site:
https://link.medium.com/UypVB5VH58
https://readmedium.com/but-you-own-the-rights-to-it-284694c64f2c
Once again, Medium’s response so far:
I commented directly to Ev Williams on one of his stories. He told me to take my comment to the Terms and Conditions article. I already had. This is my final reply to Ev Williams which has not so far received a response:
I did that earlier. So the bottom line is that Medium will now have access to all our work and can harvest it, alter it and receive payment for it without paying us outwith the partner program, so long as you do so under some sort of Medium umbrella. So if you start a Medium news, or streaming or other site you can use our work there without further payment. And you won’t be removing the paragraph under contention. Understood. Thanks.
No answer was the loud reply
I’ve seen comments from some writers desperately trying to believe in fairies. It might not be that bad. I mean they wouldn’t do that to us, surely. Would they?
I think we have our answer, in the silence.
I’ve seen some claim it doesn’t matter. You are of course entitled not to care how your work is used and whether you receive fair (or any) compensation for it. But I think it matters quite a lot.
What’s next?
You know, I never even considered they would pull a stunt like this. This site has been my constant companion during the Covid nonsense; it has been the source of inspiration and joy and anger and irritation. It’s an incorporeal realm I visited gladly every day. I’ve written about 125 articles on everything from politics to mental health to ghost stories since March this year. I’ve blocked a few and applauded many.
I’m not a Twitterhead (though I am active there again), or a Facebook aficionado, I have a small, sad Instagram account. Medium took the place of all of the above. A site for writers, by writers. A dream come true.
And just like that, gone. Five months of writing, slowly gaining a reasonable following, gaining a Top Writer status, being curated, happily counting the pennies as my earnings increased. Five months of friendships cultivated, the hands of help both offered and received. Gone.
I’m looking at a few possibilities. I’m not too sure that this post will remain up as I am being such a squeaky wheel, so if I’m suddenly disappeared don’t forget you can find me on @bbletherskite on Twitter. If I discover good information on a decent alternative, I’ll let you know.
Additionally, don’t forget you can download your material straight from Medium. If, like me, you are removing most of your content from the site this could be important. To do so, click on your user icon and click Settings. Scroll down to accounts. Click download.zip. You will be emailed a link to your archive, which you must click on within 24 hours.
Silver linings
If anyone can find a silver lining it will be Rasheed Hooda
These are the positives I can think of at the moment. Medium prompted me to start writing again, to hone my skills again, I’ve written plenty in the past but I was out of practice. It gave me a few new friends. It gave me inspiration and I was able to support other writers and gain support myself. It gave me editorial experience and I have written some good content while here, I should have no problem finding some of it a new home.
And I was getting lazy. I’d been looking at other options for weeks, places to sell my work for more money and more views, but Medium made it too easy for me. I’ve now had the kick up the bum I needed to get out there and do it.
Maybe Medium will remain as a site where newbie writers can practice their skills, a few bloggers, some would-be writers without a lot of experience will continue to write here. Maybe a few generous souls who don’t mind their work being plundered at will, plus the tiny fraction of huge accounts who will doubtless be offered different TOS to the hoi polloi.
Perhaps new writers will stay here till they branch out and move on to sites which recognise that writers deserve to offered basic respect, and be compensated for their work.
Whatever remains after this, it won’t be a site I have much interest in.
I cannot bring myself to write my heart out and hand it over to strangers for a few dollars and some claps. I can’t bring myself to support such a site long term.
And I just can’t stand anyone pissing on my boots and telling me it’s raining.
Copyright Alison Tennent 2020, all rights reserved. Scottish by birth, upbringing and bloodline, Australian by citizenship. If you’re reading this anywhere but Medium, this work may have been plagiarized, please drop me a line at [email protected].
