FretableLegal

Copyright policy

Fretable is a practice tool where members can create songs, lessons, arrangements, tabs and notes. Members can keep material private, share it with a teacher or students, or publish it publicly. A public lesson may also link to a video hosted by YouTube. This page explains the difference between linking to an external video and publishing material directly on Fretable, as well as how we handle copyright complaints.

Linked YouTube videos

A lesson may link to a publicly available YouTube video and display it through YouTube's official player. The video remains hosted and controlled by YouTube and its uploader. Fretable does not download, copy, re-host or cache the video, and linking to it does not mean that the Fretable member owns the video or the music it contains.

Only videos that are public and available for embedding may be published on a public Fretable page. Unlisted, private, age-restricted or otherwise unavailable videos cannot be published publicly. If YouTube or the uploader later restricts or removes a video, it may stop working on Fretable as well.

Material added to Fretable

Members are responsible for the tabs, notes, lyrics, images, arrangements and other material they add directly to Fretable. When publishing, members identify whether that material is original, public domain, Creative Commons, or based on someone else's copyrighted work, and confirm that what they have added is lawful for them to publish.

Copyright in music is complex. Chord progressions, lyrics, melodies, arrangements and detailed transcriptions may be treated differently, and the rules vary between countries. Fretable cannot decide whether a particular transcription or arrangement is lawful. If you are unsure about material you have added, keep it private or share it only with your teacher or students until you have obtained appropriate advice or permission.

How we handle copyrighted works

• Lyrics are never shown on a public page for material marked as based on someone else's copyrighted work. They are removed from the public snapshot when the item is published, rather than merely hidden on screen.
• Third-party audio and video remain with their original host. Fretable does not download, re-host or cache them.
• Public video lessons retain attribution to the linked video and channel where that information is available.
• We may remove or restrict any public item following a substantiated copyright complaint or where the linked source appears to be unlawful or to bypass access restrictions.

Charts and contributor rewards

A shared lesson may appear in the community Charts when it is publicly available, has not been taken down and has received a genuine member upvote. This includes lessons that link to tutorials about copyrighted songs. Chart placement reflects the community's view of the usefulness of the learning resource; it is not a claim that the member owns the linked video or the underlying song.

Contributor rewards are separate from Charts. Only completed contributions marked as original, public domain or Creative Commons count toward the Top contributors board, contributor tiers and complimentary contributor access. A linked tutorial about someone else's copyrighted work may therefore appear in Charts without earning contributor rewards.

Reporting infringing content

If you believe content on Fretable infringes your copyright, use the Report button on the public page for the item, or contact our designated agent below. You do not need a Fretable account to report something. We remove infringing content promptly.

A notice should include:

• Your name, address, telephone number and email address.
• Identification of the copyrighted work you say has been infringed, and the URL of the material on Fretable you are asking us to remove.
• A statement that you have a good-faith belief the use is not authorised by the copyright owner, its agent or the law.
• A statement that the information in your notice is accurate, and — under penalty of perjury — that you are authorised to act on behalf of the owner of the right concerned.
• Your physical or electronic signature.

Fretable is operated from the United Kingdom. We are registered with the U.S. Copyright Office and follow the DMCA notice-and-takedown process for notices from U.S. rights holders, and we act on properly substantiated complaints from rights holders anywhere.

Counter-notice

If your content was removed and you believe that was a mistake or misidentification, you may send a counter-notice to the agent above. It must include:

• Your name, address, telephone number and email address.
• Identification of the material that was removed and the location where it appeared before removal.
• A statement under penalty of perjury that you have a good-faith belief the material was removed as a result of mistake or misidentification.
• A statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the Federal District Court for the judicial district in which your address is located — or, if your address is outside the United States, to the jurisdiction of any judicial district in which we may be found — and that you will accept service of process from the person who gave the original notice or their agent.
• Your physical or electronic signature.

We may forward your counter-notice, including the contact details in it, to the person who submitted the original complaint.

Repeat infringers

We record a strike against an account each time we remove its content following a substantiated complaint. Accounts that accumulate three strikes are terminated, and we may terminate an account sooner where the infringement is serious or deliberate. Strikes removed on successful counter-notice do not count.

Changes to this policy

Last updated 5 August 2026. We'll update this page as our process changes.