Universal Issues Stern Warning Against AI Music To Streaming Giants: 'Protect Our Rights'

In the past six months, the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology was taken to new heights as social media became a great platform to publicize the work that the said technology has produced.

For those who are chronically online, one would have remembered the shocking photos circulating on Twitter where embattled former President Donald Trump was dramatically detained by police officers while being on the streets. Gullible internet users were made to believe those were actual photos shot and taken somewhere in the streets of Manhattan or Florida, but it was all AI.

Not only are AI-generated photos prevalent on social media, but AI-generated music and songs are already present - talk about how a YouTube video of Ariana Grande seemingly professionally recorded SZA's "Kill Bill" made rounds online.

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This is the very thing that prompted Universal Music Group to send a stern reminder to music streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music to heighten its defenses to keep out AI platforms and companies from using copyrighted work to train.

Universal Music Group Warns Streamers of AI Music

In a message obtained by The Financial Times, the music group warned streaming giants to heighten their security to prevent AI platforms from using the songs and their platforms as a training ground.

"We will not hesitate to take steps to protect our rights and those of our artists," the group said in a statement.

According to Billboard, these AI platforms are being "trained" to produce new content by feeding them existing works, in this case, a huge volume of songs that could be obtained from streaming platforms. Music industry execs have begun pointing out that this process infringes the copyrights of many artists who have worked tirelessly in creating the record.

Existing Copyright Complaints Against AI Platforms

A group of visual artists has initially taken to the high court to file a class action lawsuit over the use of copyright images to train these AI platforms. Getty Images, a leading provider of stock images and editorial photography have filed a case already, accusing them of scraping their database. (via Billboard)

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) also issued a statement back in October 2022, issuing an ominous warning against AI companies: "That use is unauthorized and infringes our members' rights by making unauthorized copies of our members works."

Tags

Universal Music Group, Spotify, Apple Music