Am I allowed to embed content from others on my website?

Embedding (framing) content on your website is often permitted without permission, provided the copyright holder has made the work freely and publicly available on the internet themselves — think of a public YouTube video. However, if the copyright holder has taken technical protection measures against embedding, you may not circumvent this. The situation is therefore more nuanced than “embedding is always allowed”.

You may not simply copy images, videos, or text from other websites: they may be protected by copyright, in which case you need permission. It is often said that embedding is allowed because nothing is copied. The reality is more nuanced.

What is embedding?

Embedding or framing is displaying content from another website within a frame on your own site. The content is not copied, but made visible through a kind of digital window; it remains in its original location. Social media sites often facilitate this with ready-made HTML code, but with some technical knowledge, other content can also be embedded.

When is embedding allowed without permission?

Whether embedding constitutes infringement was addressed in the Svensson judgment (ECLI:EU:C:2014:76). The case concerned a site with embedded, publicly accessible articles. The Court of Justice ruled that there is no “new public”: by making a work freely available on the internet, the right holder accepts that anyone with internet access can view it. It does not even matter that the impression is created that the work is located on the embedding site.

The BestWater judgment (ECLI:EU:C:2014:2315) confirmed this for videos: framing is not necessarily an infringement, again because the videos were already freely and publicly available and no new audience is reached. In short: if the rights holder has made the work accessible to all internet users themselves, they cannot prohibit embedding — which is why you may, for example, embed public YouTube videos.

When is embedding without permission actually prohibited?

In both judgments, the content was freely accessible and the right holder had not taken any measures against embedding. In the case of VG Bild-Kunst v SPK (ECLI:EU:C:2021:181), the question arose as to the situation where the right holder *does* take restrictive measures, or whether licensees are obliged to do so.

The Court ruled that in that case it cannot be assumed that the right holder consented to embedding via framed links: he did not have the objective of making the work available to the public of a third-party site. If the technical measures taken or prescribed are sufficiently effective, the right holder may therefore object to embedding.

Consequences for your license agreement

This offers opportunities for licensors who want to better protect their work: they can include in their license agreement that the licensee must make framed links technically impossible.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I embed a YouTube video on my website?

In principle yes, if the video is freely and publicly available on YouTube by or with the permission of the rights holder. In that case, no new audience is reached and no separate permission is required.

Am I always allowed to embed as long as I don't copy?

No. If the rights holder has taken effective technical measures against embedding, you may not circumvent them, and embedding can indeed constitute infringement.

How do I protect my own work from embedding?

By taking effective technical measures and stipulating in your license agreement that licensees make framing technically impossible.

Questions about embedding and copyright?

The copyright specialists at MKB Juristen assess whether you may embed content or how to protect your own work. Schedule a free intake consultation .