Recently, the UK Government published their plans to launch a consultation on how they can ensure the law around AI and copyright fully supports the AI sector, as well as creative industries within the UK. The main points to note from the consultation at this stage are that the Government is seeking to bring clarity to both the creative and AI sectors on how copyright protected works are used to train AI models and that several proposals have already been made.
Proposals made by the Government in their press release include that copyright owners will have greater control over how their works are used by AI developers, enhance their ability to be paid for the use of their works, and seek greater transparency from AI firms over how data is being used to train AI models and how AI-generated content is labelled. Both the creative and AI sectors are crucial to the Government’s Industrial Strategy. Therefore, it is taking these measures to ensure both sectors can co-exist and grow by building trust between the two.
Currently, there is vast uncertainty around how copyright law applies to AI. From a creative perspective, large amounts of copyright works are being used by AI developers without the rightsholders’ consent, and therefore rightsholders are losing out on royalty payments they would otherwise be entitled to. From an AI perspective, developers face clear legal risks which stifles investment, innovation and adoption.
A number of high-profile musicians and artists have spoken about their frustration with AI and their fears that it will erode creative industries. Most recently, Sir Paul McCartney has backed calls to stop the mass copyright infringement that is being committed by AI companies building generative AI, stating that it could “take over”. The consultation will remain open until 25 February 2025.
If you have any questions on the above, please do not hesitate to contact the team at McDaniels Law on 0191 281 4000 or legal@mcdanielslaw.com.
