Hanno Basse discussed his company’s work and the evolution of generative AI in filmmaking during this week’s HPA Tech Retreat, saying, “The ultimate goal is to make more movies.” Basse weighed in on subjects such as data provenance and budgets, and spoke about progress being made in filmmaking, predicting that in “probably two years, we’re going to have very high performing open source foundation models.”
‘The Ultimate Goal Is to Make More Movies,’ Says CTO of Stability AI
Europe set to simplify corporate regulation, EU’s digital chief says
The European Commission will propose at least five sets of legislation this year to spur investment and simplify regulation on companies, including in the field of artificial intelligence, the European Union’s digital chief said on Thursday. The executive Commission is under pressure from EU member countries such as France to ease regulations, and also faces challenges from the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.Source: Europe set to simplify corporate regulation, EU’s digital chief says
EU Withdraws AI Liability Proposal; US Seeks Comments on AI Action Plan
The EU is withdrawing proposed regulations for handling victim’s claims of harm caused by AI — but it faces internal opposition. The commission’s change of heart was blasted by Axel Voss, a German member of the European Parliament. “Why the sudden U-turn? The answer likely lies in pressure from industry lobbyists who view any liability rules as an existential threat to their business models,” Voss told the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP).
Source: AI Regulations: EU Withdraws AI Liability Proposal; US Seeks Comments on AI Action Plan | PYMNTS.com
Spotify Looks to Expand AI-Narrated Audiobooks On Its Platform
Books that use AI narration will be marked in the metadata on Spotify and the book description will lead with the statement, “This audiobook is narrated by a digital voice.” Spotify had already supported digital voice-narrated content created with Google Play Books, however, this adds in another possibility for authors, as Spotify’s audiobook production platform, Findaway has specific rules around working with AI narration services.
Source: Spotify Looks to Expand AI-Narrated Audiobooks On Its Platform
On social video and music, short vs long-form and pressure on creators…
Research firm MusicWatch reckons that there are now 103 million music listeners on social-video apps in the US alone, averaging nearly an hour a day discovering and listening to music within those apps. Its study also explores the competitive landscape. According to MusicWatch’s latest ‘audiocensus’ survey, TikTok accounts for a 29% share of weekly social video hours for American music listeners, ahead of YouTube Shorts (26%) and Instagram Reels and Facebook Reels (both 18%).
Source: On social video and music, short vs long-form and pressure on creators…
EU accused of leaving ‘devastating’ copyright loophole in AI Act
An architect of EU copyright law has said legislation is needed to protect writers, musicians and creatives left exposed by an “irresponsible” legal gap in the bloc’s Artificial Intelligence Act. Axel Voss, a German centre-right member of the European parliament, who played a key role in writing the EU’s 2019 copyright directive, said that law was not conceived to deal with generative AI models.
Source: EU accused of leaving ‘devastating’ copyright loophole in AI Act
Will Licensing Hurdles Delay Spotify Remixes?
The question is front of mind on the heels of Spotify’s latest teaser for a superfan-geared offering, which reports have referred to as Supremium, Deluxe, and Music Pro alike over the years. Against the backdrop of streaming-growth slowdowns in established markets, it makes more sense than ever (in theory) to squeeze additional revenue out of diehard fans. But not everyone is on board with Spotify’s expansion ambitions.
How Cutting Edge’s Billion-Dollar Venture With Warner Bros. Discovery Will Work
Earlier this month, Warner Bros. Discovery and Cutting Edge Group announced they were teaming up to launch a joint venture to generate more money from one of the original Hollywood studios’ catalog of 400,000 movie and television songs. This novel arrangement was inspired by WBD’s need to get more out of its most valuable assets as the rise of streaming shakes the fundamental economics underlying modern media businesses.
Source: How Cutting Edge’s Billion-Dollar Venture With Warner Bros. Discovery Will Work
Labor moving too slowly on making big tech pay Australian media for news, Coalition and Greens say
The design of the new initiative is yet to be determined, and a consultation paper on the code was due to be released early this year. But the threat of retaliatory tariffs from the US have fuelled concerns the news bargaining incentive, announced in December, could be delayed.
Source: Labor moving too slowly on making big tech pay Australian media for news, Coalition and Greens say
Is DeepSeek training its AI on copyrighted music without permission?
The Director General of The International Confederation of Music Publishers (ICMP) has suggested there is evidence that this could be the case. “DeepSeek falls into the category of AI companies choosing to scrape the internet’s content, including the world’s copyright protected music, [and] use it for commercial purposes, without a license from rightholders and creators,” ICMP Director General John Phelan wrote in a LinkedIn post.
Source: Is DeepSeek training its AI on copyrighted music without permission?