By Kate Edwards
An experienced non-profit leader, Kate Edwards has spent her career in service of the arts and creative industries. She spent more than 15 years with the Association of Canadian Publishers, has served on several industry boards, and in January 2024, was appointed CEO of Access Copyright, representing more than 13,000 Canadian publishers, writers, and visual artists.
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There are a lot more questions than there are answers about how the copyright landscape in Canada may be changed by generative AI tools.
The concerns that have been expressed are significant and they include:
- the unauthorized use of works by generative AI platforms for training,
- how authors and publishers will be compensated for use of their works,
- whether synthetic works created with generative AI tools will be protected by copyright, and
- how all of this affects the livelihoods and craft of writers across the creative sector.
At Access Copyright, we share these concerns.
That’s why we’ve been working closely with colleagues across the Canadian writing and publishing industry to advocate for regulations that will protect the copyrights of creators and allow a marketplace to emerge for the licensing of content to support AI development.
AI regulation is still in its infancy in Canada. On June 16, 2022, Bill C-27, known as the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA), was tabled in Parliament. This was before the widespread use of ChatGPT, and many commentators have observed that the government is now playing catch-up.
AIDA is intended to create a framework for AI systems, regulating international and interprovincial trade and commerce in AI systems by establishing common requirements across Canada for the design, development and use of those systems. It also aims to prohibit certain conduct in relation to AI systems that could result in serious harm to individuals or their interests.
While Bill C-27 has worked its way through the legislative process, the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development released a voluntary code of conduct for AI developers and systems to help support the “ongoing development of a robust, responsible AI ecosystem in Canada.” As of early May 2024, Bill C-27 itself is still being studied by the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology, subject to a clause-by-clause walk-through. Access Copyright has joined colleague organizations across the creative sector in presenting recommendations to the Committee to strengthen C-27’s protections for rightsholders.
There are signs that marketplace solutions are emerging to both facilitate AI development and allow creators and rightsholders to participate in this ecosystem. For example, the recently announced Fairly Trained initiative offers companies in the AI space certification to demonstrate that they respect creators and have licensed the content they have used to train their systems. Voluntary licensing agreements, such as the one recently struck in the UK between the Financial Times and OpenAI, also hold promise, as do collective licensing solutions, which have a long history of efficiently serving the needs of both content users and creators.
Regulation is also taking hold, particularly with the approval of the European Union Artificial Intelligence Act in March 2024. The Act creates obligations for AI developers to comply with copyright laws and be transparent in their data usage. This early legislative solution seeks to achieve the aims our industry is championing.
On April 30, 2024, Access Copyright joined colleague organizations in Ottawa to advocate for a fair AI regulatory framework to protect creators and publishers’ rights.
Our collective recommendations on AI boil down to three important considerations. When copyright-protected materials are used for AI development:
- the creator or rightsholder should be asked for consent,
- they should be credited for use of the work, and
- they should have the opportunity to be compensated for that use.
As we continue to advocate alongside other organizations for the interests of creators and publishers, we remain committed to working collaboratively to level the playing field between the creative sector and Big Tech.
Founded in 1988, Access Copyright is a national, non-profit copyright collective, which represents the reprographic rights of more than 13,000 creators and 700 publishers. To learn more about our recommendations on AI and copyright, visit our website.
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