As many drones as there are today, especially after next week, I don't think most of us have much risk of getting "caught" by the FAA. I don't think they have much of a task force to enforce anything. I think they know that too.
I'm wondering, what keeps me from being a hobbyist and capturing all the video I want, and give it to a video editor guy down the street for free? After all, I'm just having fun flying, legally. I can give my footage to anyone I want, and I don't care what he does with it. Nothing keeps that editor from selling his editing services, selling the edited footage for whatever the market will bear? He didn't fly the drone, he didn't take the footage. He's technically in the clear, he simply charges his client for editing services. If he pays me cash later, there's no way to trace anything, right? If anyone asks the customer, he hasn't paid me a dime, he only paid the editor for editing services. Why did I take the video of that building? I was just having fun honing my videographer skill set, in preparation for the day I get my 333 and operator license.
This whole "pilot's license" situation the FAA has created seems incredibly ridiculous, so much so that people don't respect it, and rightfully so. Stupid illogical regs from the FAA make good people do shady things like I've stated above, to cover their butt.
There's a caveat in the 333, I believe it's #14 on the exemption, that says you can legally fly and do commercial work if you have a licensed pilot present to observe the flight of a unlicensed drone pilot. This seems like a pretty loose regulation, because if the FAA isn't there to witness me flying, how would they know I'm illegal? Especially weeks later? Until then I'm just flying for recreation, with permission from the building owner. If you want to read authentic 333 exemptions to see all of the stipulations,
go here. The FAA posts all of the exemptions they grant there.
Being a licensed pilot doesn't automatically make you a good drone pilot. It helps to understand air regulations,
but that's all. I think the FAA knows how ridiculous their arbitrary decision to require a pilot license is, and I highly doubt anyone at the FAA is policing this "pilot's license reg" in this time of flux, while the FAA is creating a new set of regs that make more sense. Any lawyer could rip the FAA up in court given the state of flux going on right now, and I'm guessing that's why you don't have a plethora of court drone cases, even though there are thousands doing commercial work without 333's, much less without pilot's licenses.
Recently at the IDE show in LA I spoke to several training companies and organizations that file the paperwork to get 333's. They say that next year new rules will forego the pilot's license requirement but require drone training, a written test, and flight testing to get an "operator license". This makes a lot more sense to me. They initially expect to see 5 to 10 locations across the country to take the course and pass a competency test to get an "operators license" to use the 333 exemption for commercial work. As for COA's...... a blanket COA will be the SOP, allowing commercial work anywhere in the US, at any time during daylight.
If you ever listen to multirotorpodcasts.com, Joe and Erick have been doing commercial aerial video shoots for years (aerialdroneworx.com). Erick was a pilot, but his license has expired. Joe isn't a pilot and he does commercial drone shoots all the time, doing commercials for BMW, shot a Soccer Movie, all kinds of stuff. Joe says he plans to get his pilot's license, but hasn't yet. They've been podcasting for a year now, talking all about this, and admitting they don't have a pilot's license. They don't seem to be worried at all, and they've never mentioned having a licensed pilot observing either.... but they do say "you're supposed to have a pilot's license" with a 333 to do commercial work, when they talk about starting your own business doing commercial drone shoots.
I sent my paperwork off to the FAA a few weeks ago for a 333. I don't have a pilot's license, and I don't plan to get one either. I'm waiting for the new regs. If you want to apply for the 333, the best deal going is through
acesdeals.biz for $149, they do all the paperwork creation and send it to you to sign and mail off to the FAA, it's a pretty easy process.