The UK’s creative industries have collectively launched a new campaign to raise awareness of the risks of creative content being given away to generative AI companies for free.
The arrival today (25 February) of the ‘Make It Fair’ initiative coincides with the conclusion of a consultation held by the UK government regarding laws surrounding copyright and AI.
Among the respondents to the consultation are PRS for Music, who have outlined their opposition to the government’s proposed changes to the UK’s copyright framework — which would make it easier for AI companies to train their models on creative works without permission. The organisation is instead advocating for a robust regulatory framework for AI that respects the fundamental principles of copyright, consent and fair pay, supported by transparency obligations on AI companies so creators can know if and how their works are used.
The ‘Make It Fair’ campaign, which has been featured on the front of a number of regional and national daily newspapers today, is aiming to highlight to the public how many generative AI models scrape creative content from the internet without permission, or giving credit or payment to their creators.
Given that the creative industries collectively generate over £120bn a year towards the UK economy, the campaign warns the impact on the sector would be ‘devastating if [generative AI models] continue to be unchecked — or worse still if the government legitimises this content theft’.
The campaign is also aiming to encourage the UK public to write to their MPs in support of the creative industries. In partnership with its fellow members of the Creative Rights in AI Coalition, PRS has built an easy-to-use template email that can be adapted to include your personal views and context when writing to your MP.
Crispin Hunt, President of the PRS Members’ Council and multi-platinum selling songwriter, said about the campaign: ‘This is a pivotal moment. Creators are by no means anti-AI, but we cannot sit by while big tech companies attempt to tear apart the copyright protections that underpin our livelihoods, purely to maximise their profit margins. It is crucial to get this right: not only for the UK economy, but for the next generation of British songwriters, filmmakers and artists.’
Bjorn Ulvaeus, ABBA co-founder, singer/songwriter and President of CISAC, added: ‘There is no way we can or should stand against AI. I am using AI models myself, and these are wonderful tools that can enhance creativity. But this progress must never come at the expense of creators’ rights. This is not just an ethical issue: it’s economic good sense because the whole concept of copyright has immense impact on culture, jobs and the economy. We can’t let that be watered down by poor regulation of AI.’
Having launched a music industry campaign to complement the launch of the ‘Make It Fair’ initiative, composer and Fairly Trained founder Ed Newton-Rex said in a statement: ‘1000 UK musicians released a joint album today, recordings of empty studios, calling on the government to change course or risk empty studios becoming the norm. The government’s proposals would hand the life’s work of the UK’s talented creators — its musicians, its writers, its artists — to AI companies, for free. The government must change course and make it fair.’
For more on PRS’s approach to AI, including how the organisation is working with AI services and advocating on behalf of members with government and policymakers, you can read their guiding principles here.
