The latest YouTube crackdown has targeted discord music bots. Google, the company that owns YouTube, has filed for a cease and desist and sent them to the owners of Groovy Bot.
Groovy Bot is a music bot that lets Discord users play songs straight from YouTube videos. It is currently installed on more than 16 million Discord servers.
The search giant wants the music bot gone within this week. This means that Groovy Bot will by shutting down by Aug. 30.
Discord's Groovy Bot to Shut Down
According to The Verge, the search giant notified Groovy about the violations done by the bot. This includes modifying the service and using it for commercial purposes.
The search giant added that its APIs are only for those who can comply with their terms of service.
Nik Ammerlaan, the owner of Groovy Bot, said in a message announcing the discontinuation of the bot that Groovy was able to function properly for five years before this issue.
The Groovy Bot sources music from platforms like Spotify and YouTube, and it allows Discord users to play and share them in servers when the music bot is installed.
Groovy Bot also allows users on Discord to have a social listening party while using the audio from YouTube videos.
The bot has become very popular within the community, and it is estimated to have 250 million users. Because of its popularity, it has caught the attention of Google.
Ammerlaan said they are not sure why Google is now taking action against the bot when it has been available for years. He admits that when happened, he saw something coming, and he wasn't surprised when they received the cease and desist letter.
While the bot supports other platforms such as Soundcloud, Spotify and others, 98% of the songs played on Groovy were straight from YouTube, according to Gizmodo.
Going After the Bots
Google's move to force the bot to shut down could mean that Discord users will see similar action against other bots on the platform.
The most popular Discord music bot is Rythm, and it is still working, but no one knows for how long. Jet, the co-owner of Rythm bot, said in a statement that they do not have any plans to shut down, and they've not received any letter cease and desist letter yet.
Rhythm is installed on 20 million Discord servers, and it currently has more than 560 million users, according to PCGamer.
Although the owner of Rythm refused to release an official statement regarding the issue, it is safe to say that they have not heard from Google regarding its service.
However, it can be assumed that if Google went after Groovy Bot, it is only a matter of time before it goes after Rythm.
Groovy Bot's discontinuation came weeks after several sites that allow people to download YouTube videos via links disappeared from the web. The removal of the bot will leave a hole in Discord's bot list.
A spokesperson for Discord stated that even though the decision came as a shock, they take the rights of other companies seriously. If a bot running on the platform violates the rights of others, Discord will take action.
However, it is not clear if the crackdown is solely focused on music bots or if it will also affect movie streaming on Discord servers.
Related Article: Discord Community Server: How to Sign Up and Set it Up
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Written by Sophie Webster
