SoA requires AI companies to obtain consent and pay “reasonable compensation” for the use of copyrighted works

In the UK, the Society of Authors (SoA) has written to technology companies demanding that they obtain the consent of authors before using their work to develop artificial intelligence (AI), reports the Bookseller.

The letter was sent to companies such as Microsoft, Google, OpenAI, Apple and Meta on behalf of the SoA’s more than 12,000 members. The letter states that the use of copyrighted works by AI developers without a license or consent from the author “amounts to copyright infringement”. Another violation occurs when “the AI ​​model is used to create a work (…) that reproduces all or a substantial part of the copyrighted work”.

The letter also states that such practices are “clearly contrary to UK law and international copyright rules” and calls on the companies concerned to instead seek licensing options on commercial terms with the respective rights holders.

SoA members decided to write to tech companies on the issue at an extraordinary general meeting in May. The Creative Rights Alliance (CRA) sent a similar letter to tech companies earlier this month on behalf of its member organisations (including SoA), which together represent over 500,000 creatives.

The SoA’s letter gives the tech companies seven days to acknowledge receipt and 21 days to provide a “substantive response,” calling for the identification of “works previously used to develop AI models,” a system for requesting permissions to use authors’ works, offers of “reasonable compensation” for such permissions, and the removal of “all works used without permission” from AI systems along with the provision of “proof of compliance.”

Category: International News