I acknowledge their apology, but I still don’t think it’s sincere. It’s an obligation apology. You know the one. I’m sure we all did it as kids.
You do something wrong, and then you get yelled at by your parents.
“I’m sorry,” you say.
“No you’re not,” your parent says, “you’re sorry you got caught. If you were really sorry, you wouldn’t have done it.”
The Fine Brothers are only sorry because they got caught, and are receiving tremendous backlash because of it. Remember, this isn’t an isolated incident.
Example 1
https://twitter.com/RedMinus/status/694026793964085248
Twitter user RedMinus posted screenshots of the Fine Brothers blatantly implying that the very concept of filming someone’s candid reaction to something is “their format” and they feel so entitled to it that they are willing to pitch a fit and try and take legal action.
And I’m sure we’ve all heard the numerous stories of other YouTubers whose videos the Fine Brothers have content claimed (which, of course, is ironic, considering how they take people’s content without permission.)
Example 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYGRFeU8YDE
TL;DR - The Fine Brothers sent a mass email to several animators in hopes of getting them to animate for them, in which they “praise” them for their work. They also apparently weren’t going to pay them (or pay them a reasonable amount.)
The Fine Brothers contradict themselves, blatantly lie and (as evidence as to why they never specify what their “format” is) try to hide things from people.
In conclusion, this tweet sums up my feelings pretty well…
The Fine Brothers have damaged their reputation and broken countless people’s trust, and I’m perfectly okay with letting them suffer the consequences of their actions.
i kind of still like the finebros tho… like honestly, its not like half of us were going to make react videos anyway. people are making such a big deal about it just because everyone else is. but honestly, im just there to see the videos, period. im not going to make my own react videos and even if i was, i think the whole react world thing is pretty cool. youre making this into such a big deal, but honestly, they didnt even mean what they said. just stop being jerks about it. what if you were put out on the spot like that in front of the whole internet. jeez id be so humiliated they just made a mistake jesus christ… @magnumsynopsis
@derpydjuk:
If I may, allow me to address your post, because there may be some things you might not be aware about:
i kind of still like the finebros tho…honestly, im just there to see the videos, period
Okay, that’s fine. You are a free human being, you are free to do what you like. This message is not really for you. What this message is, is to content creators, YouTube users, anyone interested in creating things, and more importantly, this message is one of awareness to the general public to something that the Fine Bros. did which is arguably underhanded, wrong, and very very vague. Because what the Fine Bros. were doing, and had done, is infringe upon other’s creativity, and tried to monetise something they didn’t really own.
like honestly, its not like half of us were going to make react videos anyway.
Okay, let me explain something, that is not the issue here (this is a red herring). So what if half of us were not going to make one? That isn’t the issue here. The real issue and the big question is, “what about those that do and have done?” You can find out for yourself:
It also doesn’t excuse them harping on ellen for having children react to old technology. Fundamentally it comes down to them attempting to copyright a general concept rather than a specific style. Imagine if apple started suing anyone who used a PC. That’s basically what finebros did. They attempted to copyright a general concept that existed long before them. And their apology? It’s because they got caught and called out and lost millions of subscribers. Not to mention they were essentially going “you can give us money and then make a generic video!”
Finebros started with exploiting people and that’s how they will end