New report, in response to overwhelming response from public consultation, says government ‘must take the time needed to get this right’.
There’s a lot of enthusiasm for – and hype around – the wonders that can be achieved by generative artificial intelligence. That makes it all the more striking that the UK government has decided to pause controversial plans to change copyright law in favour of the AI sector.
Photo by Brett Jordan / Unsplash
The issue is the use of copyrighted material, such as published works, to train AI systems. In many cases, this has been done without a licence or permission from copyright holders, which has sparked outrage across the creative sector, with some big names weighing in.
Interviewed by the BBC, Sir Elton John said AI companies were ‘committing theft … on a high scale.’
Copyright material – also known as intellectual property – has considerable monetary value. According to figures from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the creative industries contributed £124bn in gross value added (GVA) to the UK economy in 2023, or 5.2% of the whole.
Last summer, when the government moved its Data (Use and Access) Bill with provisions to allow tech companies to use copyright material for training, cross-bench peer Baroness Kidron objected that it would effectively ‘refine theft’. However, the government over-ruled objections and declined an amendment to the legislation that would have required tech companies to reveal the sources of material used.
Then, between December and February, the government held a public consultation. The results were startling. A massive 97% of respondents rejected the proposed option of copyright exemption with opt-outs, while 81% expressed a preference for licensing to be required for AI development – that is, keeping copyright largely unchanged.
More than 90% of respondents also agreed that AI developers should disclose the sources of their training material.
It seems these objections gave been heeded. The government’s Report on Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, published today, sets out a more cautious path forward.
‘We must take the time needed to get this right. We will not introduce reforms to copyright law until we are confident that they will meet our objectives for the economy and UK citizens,’ it says.
‘This means protecting the UK’s position as a creative powerhouse, while unlocking the extraordinary potential of AI to grow the economy and improve lives. Any reform must ensure that right holders can be fairly rewarded for the economic value their work creates, and that they are protected against unlawful and unfair use of their work. It must also ensure that AI developers can access high quality content. It is clear through the consultation and our subsequent engagement that there is no consensus on how these objectives should be achieved.’
It goes on to say that the government will gather further evidence of the impact of copyright law on the development of AI across the economy. The suggestion is that ministers hope to amend their plans, rather thank rethink them entirely. We shall watch with interest…
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