Hey Pandas, AITA For Asking My Boss To Protect My Intellectual Property? (Closed)

I’m an English teacher in a private primary school in Italy. I teach English as a second language to Italian kids. Over the lockdown, I’ve recorded several didactical videos for my students to make their distance learning more effective and … fun. They just love watching "Teacher TV" where I put on funny hats, pretend to fall asleep mid-class…, all the while teaching good English!

So the other day a nice lady I know only from seeing her in my neighborhood (I must confess I don’t even know her name) stops me in the middle of the street to thank me for the amazing videos her kid is soooo enjoying. Since I teach some 230 kids every year, fighting embarrassment, I ask her who her son is. She says he doesn’t even go to the school where I teach! So I ask her how she would have gained access to those videos and she says she’s promised not to say… dumbstruck and lost for words, I let go and politely say goodbye.

The following day I go to school and, after explaining the situation to the Principal, I politely ask if it’s possible for my videos to be accessible on the school portal for vision (with a user and psw) but not for download. I know it can be done for I’ve got some (very basic) IT knowledge. The Principal says no! That’s why I’ve removed all of my "Teacher TV" videos from the school portal and now I only send them to those students whose parents specifically request them, and I keep a list. They’re kind of "personal" you get to see my house, my dog, myself (sometimes in really weird funny clothes!) and sometimes my daughter who helps me with role-play.

AITA for erasing the videos from the portal and no longer uploading anything new, since my Principal refused to protect my intellectual property with a simple setting in the school portal? Maybe I was wrong and I deeply feel for kids who don’t have access to good resources, still.. it’s my "stuff" and I can’t help feeling robbed!

This post may include affiliate links.

Clearly NTA. Protect your privacy! Thank you for being a great, motivated teacher to those kids

Report

Final score:

18points

GoodWolf

POST

Tom 2 years ago

lol Videos can easily be downloaded with browser extensions, video downloader sites, screen grab software, and other 3rd party software. OP is naïve if he/she thinks it's possible to put a video online without people having the ability to download it. lol

0points

View More Replies...

View more comments

NTA. You made these, thus you own the rights to them and can do what you wish with them.

Report

Final score:

12points

Falcon

POST

Bored Panda 2 years ago

It's funny that people are downvoting my comment that "it is not your IP if it was created on company time." I understand that people would like it if that teacher owned the IP - it seems "socially just", but it is not how the law works. So the teacher is NTA, but it is also not their IP. Presumably making these videos offset time that the teacher would have been using to do other school/student-related work. The OP never said they made these videos in their off hours. That is the crux of the argument: on company time? The company owns it. On your own time? You own it.

1point

View More Replies...

View more comments

Nta. The lady knows what she is doing if she promised not to tell. You were completely in the right here.

Report

Final score:

10points

Nicole Marie

POST

NTA, it's your intellectual property, so the principle should protect it.

Report

Final score:

7points

Spikey boi

POST

Bored Panda 2 years ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

View More Replies...

View more comments

NTA. Your boss should have asked your permission first, it's your videos that you made.

Report

Final score:

5points

f o r g

POST

Bored Panda 2 years ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

NTA. You just wanted to make some funny videos for the kids you teach.

Report

Final score:

5points

Sequoia door.

POST

NTA, your teacher is probably getting a pay out for sharing your work. I'd have done the same, It's your work using your equipment.

Report

Final score:

4points

oldandexhausted79

POST

Bored Panda 2 years ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

NTA but neither is the school, if the teacher is claiming the intellectual property then its their responsibility to enforce the copyright issues, not schools.
Uploading the videos to youtube an privating them should work just fine, they can invite the students and only they can watch the videos, unlisted videos would probably still be shared when the link leaks.

Report

Final score:

4points

Naesil 🇫🇮

POST

Tom 2 years ago (edited)

There are tons of YouTube video downloader websites where all a person has to do is copy the address from the address bar and paste it. There are also plenty of browser extensions that let people download videos. Plus there are plenty of software applications that a person can download that will do the same thing. Posting it on YouTube, even as private, would not prevent people from downloading the video. The teacher is obviously NTA, but they are naïve.

2points

NTA, if your child and home are in the video they are a privacy issue and if you have the videos unlisted by theory if anyone else shares it without permission I would state the fact of photos of your child being shared without written permission.

Report

Final score:

3points

Lydia Owen the Bi-tch

POST

#10

It’s your property, and your privacy! I don’t really know much about this stuff but I would totally say NTA. If somebody if recording your videos and posting them on Facebook or YouTube or something, that’s not okay.

Report

Final score:

3points

MikeWheelerFan

POST

#11

NTA. If these are your videos, you have the right to them. Protect your privacy!

Report

Final score:

3points

colorfultragedy

POST

#12

NTA, clearly the principal is at fault here. Being a teacher is such an amazing job, it’s great that you were trying to make it more fun for the students! Privacy is important though, and if the principal doesn’t respect that…

Report

Final score:

2points

BORKADYMUSIC

POST

#13

NTA, especially when the videos are kind of private and including your kid. You may consider uploading them to external site (like vimeo) where you can fully control privacy settings (access password). You may also think of recording a "non-private" video once in a while, suitable for others to see, but only if you're really concerned about other kids missing your content. Anyways I think you were absolutely right with what you did.

Report

Final score:

2points

greenbean

POST

Hey Pandas, AITA For Asking My Boss To Protect My Intellectual Property? (Closed)

Games

Famiglia Poli

Famiglia Poli

Gabrielė Malukaitė

Gabrielė Malukaitė