France’s leading publishing and authors’ associations have filed a lawsuit against U.S. tech giant Meta , opens new tab for allegedly using copyright-protected content on a massive scale without authorisation to train its artificial intelligence (AI) systems. This is the first such action against an AI giant in France but there is a wave of lawsuits notably in the United States against Meta and other tech companies.
Source: French publishers and authors file lawsuit against Meta in AI case
In a ruling filed on Friday (March 7), US District JudgeVince Chhabriagranted in part and denied in part Meta’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit. The judge ruled that the authors’ claim under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) over alleged removal of copyright management information (CMI) can go forward. “The plaintiffs have adequately alleged that Meta intentionally removed [copyright management information] to conceal copyright infringement,” Judge Chhabria wrote.
Source: Sarah Silverman’s Meta copyright lawsuit advances as judge allows authors’ DMCA claims
The latest revision of the Code is billed as having “a more streamlined structure with refined commitments and measures” compared to earlier iterations, based on feedback on the second draft that was published in December. Further feedback, working group discussions and workshops will feed into the process of turning the third draft into final guidance. And the experts say they hope to achiever greater “clarity and coherence” in the final adopted version of the Code.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has abandoned a proposal that would have required Alphabet Inc.’s Google to divest from artificial intelligence firms. Despite dropping the AI divestment demand, the DOJ and a coalition of 38 state attorneys general are pushing for a court order that would compel Google to sell its Chrome browser and implement additional measures to address its illegal search monopoly.
Source: DOJ Drops Google AI Divestment Plan but Pushes Forward in Antitrust Battle | PYMNTS.com
Canada supplies most of the newsprint used in America and there’s no easy way for the U.S. to quickly replace its production. Local newspapers already cut to the bone and then some in recent years. Especially hard hit are small papers in rural and suburban communities. Abruptly raising their largest material cost by 25% for no apparent reason will be the last straw for some.
Source: Tariffs latest blow to newspaper industry; AI fears confirmed
A group of European Union lawmakers wrote to top U.S. officials to push back on accusations that the bloc is using its new digital competition rules to treat American tech giants unfairly, saying that some U.S. companies are calling for its enforcement. The letter, seen by Dow Jones Newswires, was sent to U.S. Department of Justice Attorney General Pamela Bondi and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Wednesday.
Source: EU Lawmakers Push Back on U.S. Criticism of AI Tech Regulation
Sony Music has challenged the UK government’s proposed copyright reforms, revealing it has already requested the removal of more than 75,000 AI-generated deepfakes of its artists’ content. The music giant warned that proposed changes to copyright laws would be “rushed, unbalanced and irreversible” and could significantly harm the British creative economy.
Source: Sony Music reveals 75,000 AI deepfake takedowns, slams UK’s ‘rushed’ copyright plans
The UK competition watchdog has ended its investigation into the partnership between Microsoft and the maker of ChatGPT, OpenAI. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) concluded that, despite Microsoft investing billions of dollars into OpenAI and having exclusive uses of some of its AI products, the partnership remains the same, so is not subject to review under the UK’s merger rules. Digital rights campaigners, Foxglove, said it showed the CMA had been “defanged.”
Source: UK competition watchdog drops Microsoft-OpenAI probe
GPT architect Alec Radford has been subpoenaed in a copyright case against OpenAI, according to a court filing. Radford, who left OpenAI late last year to pursue independent research, was the lead author of OpenAI’s seminal research paper on generative pre-trained transformers (GPTs). GPTs underpin OpenAI’s most popular products, including the company’s AI-powered chatbot platform, ChatGPT.
Source: Key ex-OpenAI researcher subpoenaed in AI copyright case | TechCrunch
Action is needed to protect workers in creative industries amid huge changes in technology and artificial intelligence, unions have urged. The TUC said there was an urgent need to put in place “proper guardrails” for workers ranging from artists, writers and journalists to teachers and academics. The union organisation said government proposals for copyright and an AI framework, which are under consultation, needed to go further to protect creative workers.
Source: UK unions call for action to protect creative industry workers as AI develops