Garry Newman, creator of Garry's Mod, reportedly received a DMCA takedown notice targeting unauthorized Skibidi Toilet content within the game. The sender's identity remains unclear, despite initial reports implicating Invisible Narratives, the studio behind the Skibidi Toilet film and TV projects. A Discord profile seemingly belonging to the Skibidi Toilet creator has since denied sending the notice, as reported by Dexerto.
The Curious Case of the Skibidi Toilet DMCA
The DMCA notice demanded the removal of Garry's Mod games featuring Skibidi Toilet characters, citing a lack of licensing. This is ironic, considering the Skibidi Toilet series itself originated from assets within Garry's Mod, ported over by Alexey Gerasimov's YouTube channel, DaFuq!?Boom!, using Valve's Source Filmmaker. This series propelled Skibidi Toilet to memetic fame, leading to merchandise and planned film/TV adaptations.
Conflicting Claims and Copyright Ownership
Invisible Narratives' notice asserted copyright ownership of characters like Titan Cameraman, Titan Speakerman, Titan TV Man, and Skibidi Toilet. They pointed to DaFuq!?Boom! as the source of these characters. However, Garry Newman's public statement on the s&box Discord server highlighted the absurdity of the claim, given the meme's origins in Garry's Mod.
The situation is complicated by Garry's Mod's own use of Half-Life 2 assets. Valve, however, has explicitly authorized Garry's Mod's release. Therefore, Valve, as the original owner of Half-Life 2 assets, arguably holds a stronger claim against unauthorized use than Invisible Narratives.
DaFuq!?Boom! also denied involvement in sending the DMCA notice via the s&box Discord, expressing confusion and seeking contact with Garry Newman. The notice itself was reportedly sent "on behalf of copyright holder: Invisible Narratives, LLC," claiming copyright on the aforementioned characters, registered in 2023.
A Pattern of Copyright Disputes?
This isn't DaFuq!?Boom!'s first brush with copyright controversies. Last September, they issued multiple copyright strikes against GameToons, another YouTube channel creating similar content, eventually reaching a settlement. The details of this settlement remain undisclosed.
The current situation surrounding the DMCA notice to Garry's Mod highlights a complex web of copyright ownership and the unexpected consequences of meme culture's rapid growth. The legitimacy of the DMCA notice remains uncertain, pending further investigation and clarification from all parties involved.
