Productivity Commission calls for AI copyright delay as academics, media union issue warnings
The government's economic think tank says the government should wait three years before considering adjustments to the copyright system.
New copyright licensing regimes for training AI systems proposed by the federal government do not adequately protect creators and authors from market power imbalances, according to intellectual property experts and the media union.
The deficiencies have been highlighted in submissions to the Attorney-General’s Department, which closed consultation in early December. The urgency is at odds with the Productivity Commission’s (PC) call to “wait and monitor” for three years, detailed on Friday as one of a tranche of recommendations to boost productivity.
Consultation on two alternative collective copyright licensing arrangements as well as the existing voluntary licensing arrangements, negotiated on an ad hoc basis, closed to submissions in early December.
The proposed options are for an extended collective licensing arrangement led by larger organisations that collect royalties on behalf of rightsholders or a compulsory statutory licence without the option to opt-out.
