This is a message I received via Instagram –
Hello Jackie! I have just read your article about the We Are Era Scam. I have been recently affected by WAE copyright claims. My first appeal was rejected from them, and now I can contest but if the possibility of getting a strike, and I am afraid of it. I have just sent them an email message on hi.drm@weareera.com asking for them to remove the copyright, I hope they can. Thank you very much for sharing your story, it is sad that those things happen when we are small creators trying to build online audience.
Predictable, isn’t it?
This person (a webstack developer), followed the proper procedure. He received a claim and filed his first appeal.
We Are Era, naturally, rejected it.
Now he faces the classic We Are Era choice:
- Contest the rejection and risk a YouTube strike.
- Back down and let them take his revenue.
Rubeiro states he is “afraid of it,” which is precisely the reaction We Are Era’s business model relies on.
Remember, every cent you decide to back down on claiming is helping the company (CEO – Tobias Schiwek) grow and expand per this article about their recent acquisition – https://company.rtl.com/export/sites/rtlunited/en/media/overview/press-releases-and-news/expanding-in-the-benelux/ (and accompanying photo below)
This isn’t about copyright protection; it’s a game of intimidation. They know that small creators, as this person describes himself, “trying to build an online audience,” cannot afford to risk their channel over a single claim.
This is the core of the racket. They manufacture a dispute, reject the legitimate appeal, and then hold the threat of a channel strike over the creator’s head. It is extortion, plain and simple.
Thank you for sharing your story. You are not alone. This pattern is clear, and the more creators who document this behaviour, the harder it is for We Are Era and YouTube to ignore.