A collective of screen industry guilds has issued a joint submission to the Productivity Commission urging action on AI developers who use stolen or uncompensated work.
The Australian Writers’ Guild (AWG), Australian Writers’ Guild Authorship Collecting Society (AWGACS), Australian Cinematographers Society, Australian Directors’ Guild, Australian Screen Directors Authorship Collection Society (ASDACS), Australian Guild of Screen Composers, Australian Production Design Guild, and Australian Screen Editors put forward the united front in response to the commission’s consultation on ‘Harnessing Data and Digital Technology’, one of five pillars it identified as a high priority reform area.
Under the ‘Enable AI’s productivity potential’ policy reform area, the commission notes that while AI-based systems in Australia could create “significant productivity benefits”, any “malicious or reckless” use poses risks.
It has set up a new inquiry to “monitor and review whether existing regulations remain fit-for-purpose in respect of AI technology”, considering “the desired outcomes are in relation to AI technology and what problems or shortfalls there are, if any, with current regulatory arrangements.”
The submission from the guilds identifies the infringement of creative workers’ copyright as the chief concern, imploring the Federal Government to ensure workers are aware that the infringement has taken place and that their consent is given before their work is used to ‘train’ AI datasets, with an appropriate compensation model in place. They also call for a compensatory and rectification process for infringements that have already taken place, including the removal of work from models.
AWG executive director Claire Pullen, who previously discussed the AI’s potential impacts at last year’s Canada’s Promoting Our Cultures in the Digital Age conference and appeared before a Federal Senate inquiry into the risks and opportunities of its adoption, said it was contrary to Australia’s economic and cultural interests to allow theft of work by foreign companies, or exploitation of creative workers.
“Australia has a sound copyright framework in place for how we address the theft of creative workers’ intellectual property,” she said.
“We’re not asking for unreasonable concessions, just that the government ensure that our existing laws are applied to this blatant theft of work, now and into the future. Our creative industries are billion-dollar industries, and Australian audiences want more of what we make.”
As part of their submission, the guilds outlined examples of copyright infringement associated with generative AI that had already taken place, including the dataset of pirated ebooks, known as Books3, being used by companies such as Meta, EleutherAI, and Bloomberg to train generative AI models.
It also noted the class action for copyright infringement from the US Authors Guild against OpenAI over the use of pirated book datasets, while noting that AI companies have “conceded that their models rely on the unauthorised and unremunerated use of copyrighted work”.
Since its inception, AWGACS, the secondary royalty collection society for Australian and New Zealand screenwriters and authors, has collected and distributed over $33 million to creative workers. ASDACS, the secondary royalty collection society for Australian and New Zealand screen directors, has collected and distributed $21 million.
The guilds believe the income and taxation revenue are at risk if companies continue to deploy AI systems unchecked.
“A remuneration scheme is essential to maintaining the livelihoods of creators and authors to ensure they are fairly compensated for the exploitation of their work on AI platforms,” ASDACS executive director Deb Jackson said.
“Without this, there is a significant threat to Australian creative innovation and economic growth in the creative sectors”.
Submissions into the Productivity Commission inquiry on harnessing data and digital technology close tonight (June 6), 11.59pm AEST.