Publishers Association’s response to AI Opportunities Action Plan
The AI Opportunities Action Plan, led by Matt Clifford CBE, was published this morning [13 January].
Dan Conway, CEO of the Publishers Association, said:
“The power of AI to support growth and productivity has long been championed by publishers, both as AI innovators and users in their own right and as the curators of the high-quality content needed for the development of trusted and reliable AI models.
“While we welcome the government’s recognition that our nation must not get left behind on the global stage, we need to move forward with due regard to copyright. The UK can achieve public service reform and seize all the growth opportunities associated with AI without facilitating a US tech-led heist of UK copyrighted works.
“With a consultation on copyright and AI still running it’s imperative that Matt Clifford’s recommendation that the UK reform text and data mining is not a fait accomplis. We will be seeking assurances from Ministers that all options – including enforcing the existing gold standard copyright regime with transparency provisions – remain under full consideration and proper scrutiny. The outcome of this consultation could have huge implications across the creative industries and there is a route to getting this right for all concerned – namely, by seizing the AI opportunities on offer without throwing the integrity of the copyright regime away.”