His videos on YouTube became the downfall of the father of the family, Thomas Stecker (33). This man from the Bavarian district of Cham received a bill worth 328,000 euros in his mailbox. “My stupidity is pulling the rug out from under me,” he writes on “GoFundMe.”
The 33-year-old's YouTube career began during the coronavirus pandemic – showing him how he builds Lego. He eventually gained 5,800 followers and joined the platform's partner program. In 2023 he was even paid 300 euros, reports the “Mittelbayerische Zeitung”.
Legal protection insurance does not pay for a lawyer
Then switch to a new hobby. His son wanted a model train and Stecker showed the starter kit to his community. “This is how I discovered with my son the fascination with model railways. Out of pure enthusiasm, I showed my community beautiful facilities and set up realistic attractions,” reports the father of the family on “GoFundMe”. Since he didn't have a system, he “took these scenes from other videos”, which ultimately became his downfall.
In January he received a letter from a lawyer. There is talk of a loss of licensing rights of around 328,000 euros, because he used fragments of videos from another German YouTuber, according to the Mittelbayerische Zeitung newspaper. Worse still: “Since they accuse me of doing YouTube commercially, my legal protection insurance will not pay either,” he reports on GoFundMe.
Youtuber: “That is a sum that I will never be able to raise”
According to the newspaper Mittelbayerische Zeitung, there is now a settlement offer: Stecker should pay around 5,000 euros in legal fees and another 30,000 euros. About 15,000 euros are due in March, the rest will be paid in installments of 1,000 euros per month. “It is a sum that I will never be able to raise because I already have to pay for several things,” says the 33-year-old on GoFundMe.
Now Stecker is trying to raise enough money and is also selling his Lego collection, according to the newspaper Mittelbayerische Zeitung. In the difficult situation he receives the support of his family. However, he says, “I'm exhausted.”
He resigned from his channel. He is trying to raise more money through a GoFundMe fundraiser. There he writes: “I am desperate, my nerves are exhausted, I am very afraid for our family.”
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