Amid the copyright infringement tussle between news agency Asian News International (ANI) and Youtuber creators like Mohak Mangal, the Press Trust of India (PTI) has offered content creators “highly affordable” access to its videos.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), PTI addressed the YouTube content creator community, stating that it was aware of the recent issues faced by them regarding copyright. Describing itself as India’s “most trusted news agency”, PTI said: “To support responsible content creation, we offer individual YouTube creators access to PTI videos for your YouTube content and for use in other social media platforms.”
Dear YouTube Content Creator Community,
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) May 27, 2025
We are aware of the recent issues faced by you on copyright.
As India's most trusted news agency, we at Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) remain committed to credible journalism and ethical business practices.
To support responsible… pic.twitter.com/4KMl2wwVfA
This came at a time when there’s widespread outrage among digital creators and the public over alleged overreach of copyright enforcement and its potential misuse as a tool of intimidation against independent voices.
Recently, Mangal accused ANI of misusing copyright enforcement tools to demand exorbitant fees from digital creators. In a video titled “Dear ANI”, Mangal detailed how the news agency issued multiple copyright strikes on his YouTube channel for using brief clips – ranging from nine to 13 seconds – in his videos. He alleged that ANI subsequently demanded a payment of Rs 48 lakh plus GST to revoke the strikes and prevent his channel from being deleted, as per YouTube’s policy that three strikes can lead to permanent deletion.
Read our analysis of the issue here.
While ANI has not released its official position in the case, its Editor, Smita Prakash has been reposting tweets and articles that argue for the new agency’s demand for subscription.
Prakash retweeted popular podcaster Kushal Mehra’s long post, where he called it a matter of fair usage and copyright infringement.
Alright, let me explain to illiterate Indians what free speech means. Free speech means the state has no right to jail you for what you say until and unless you make a direct call to violence (Brandenberg Vs Ohio).
— कुशल मेहरा (@kushal_mehra) May 26, 2025
A content creator I did not know about until a few hours ago…
She also retweeted an article from the news outlet Best India Info, which stated, “free speech doesn’t mean free footage – especially in a commercial media landscape.”
“Piracy is not free speech: Why YouTubers must pay for ANI’s content” https://t.co/ruOiMj7cY9
— Smita Prakash (@smitaprakash) May 26, 2025
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