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YouTube to MP3 converter site MP3Fiber shuts down after threats – but other services remain

The free MP3 download service also worked on SoundCloud and Daily Motion

Anthony Cuthbertson

Tuesday 21 August 2018 13:35 BST

Illegal YouTube download services have continued to blight the platform despite it introducing the feature to premium subscirbers (REUTERS)

A website that allows people to convert YouTube videos into MP3 files has shut down following legal pressure.

MP3Fiber allowed web users to download audio files for free from sites including YouTube, SoundCloud and Daily Motion, however it has faced a backlash from the music industry.

It is the latest in a series of closures of similar services, after the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) launched an investigation into the website's operator.

A message on the MP3Fiber website said: "Due to a complaint by the RIAA we had to shut down all conversions. Sorry for the inconvenience."

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Show all 11

1/1111 YouTube features you didn't know existed

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Play in the background

One of the YouTube app’s most frustrating shortcomings is the inability to play music videos in the background or when you’re phone’s locked. There is a way around this, but only on iOS. Open the YouTube website in Safari, play a video and then press your iPhone’s home button. After that, launch the Control Centre by sliding up from the bottom of the screen and tap play.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Loop videos

YouTube’s looping option on desktop is really useful, but nowhere near as easy to find as it should be. To loop a video, right-click it while it’s playing and select Loop. Even if you have Autoplay enabled, your video will replay itself as soon as it finishes.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Enable Dark Theme

YouTube recently introduced a black-and-red Dark Theme on the desktop, which is much easier on your eyes than the regular version of the site. Enable it by clicking the account symbol, selecting Dark Theme and turning Activate Dark Theme on.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Simplify YouTube

Another alternative YouTube user interface is available to access at youtube.com/tv. It’s a really simple, no-frills UI that’s incredibly easy to navigate.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Try out new features

You can test upcoming and experimental features early by signing up to YouTube TestTube.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Read

When you want to watch a YouTube video but don’t have your headphones and don’t want to disturb anyone around you, turn on Captions. They’re also really handy if you’re trying to watch a video in a foreign language. Transcriptions, meanwhile, break down exactly when certain things take place, so you can skip to the part you want to watch accurately and easily. In the More tab under the video title, launch the dropdown menu and select Transcript.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Use shortcuts

You can lean back in your seat and control YouTube videos with your keyboard if you want to. J and L let you rewind and fast-forward 10 seconds, K is pause/play, M is mute/unmute and the 0-9 keys let you jump through various stages of the video, from 0 per cent to 90 per cent. On the app, you can fast forward or rewind 10 seconds by double-tapping the right or left side of a video.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Limit data use

If you’re on a limited mobile data plan, there are easy ways to save yourself some money. In Settings on the YouTube app, hit General and enable Limit Mobile Data Usage and disable Autoplay.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Keep things private

Unless you make them private, other people can see your Liked videos, your saved playlists and subscriptions. If you want to hide them, go to Settings and Privacy. You can also clear or pause your History. On either desktop or the mobile app, go to History and select Clear All Watch History or Pause Watch History.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Make sharing clearer

Sometimes you want to share a video with a friend, but want them to watch a specific part, rather than the whole thing. Instead of sending the timestamp through as a separate message, make the video automatically play from the right place. Just pause it at the right moment, click the Share button, tick the Start At box and copy the URL.

11 YouTube features you didn't know existed

Get nerdy

Stats for Nerds shows you technical data for YouTube videos, including video format, audio format and bandwidth. On desktop, you can find the info simply by right-clicking the video player and selecting Stats for Nerds. On mobile, you have to enable it first in General Settings. Once that’s done, open a video, hit the menu button in the top-right corner and tap the Stats for Nerds option.

The shut down of MP3Fiber follows the demise of YouTube-MP3, a similar service that was forced to cease operations last year after a lawsuit was brought against it.

The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) has previously condemned such services, saying that the operations enable piracy that can be as damaging to the music industry as torrent sites.

"These sites are making large sums of money from music without paying a penny to those that invest in and create it," a spokesperson for BPI told Torrent Freak earlier this year.

"We continue to pursue our strategy to clear these illegal sites, to prevent music fans from being ripped off and to further encourage the use of legal music sites."

Some digital rights groups have stood behind the download services, arguing that there can be legitimate use cases for them and that the RIAA's referral to them as "stream-ripping" sites misstates copyright law.

"There exists a vast and growing volume of online video that is licensed for free downloading and modification, or contains audio tracks that are not subject to copyright," the Electronics Frontier Foundation (EFF) told the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) last year.

"Moreover, many audio extractions qualify as non-infringing fair uses under copyright. Providing a service that is capable of extracting audio tracks for these lawful purposes is itself lawful, even if some users infringe."

Other free services remain operational, including the Videoder app that has over 40 million users worldwide.

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