47
Training Generative AI Models on Copyrighted Works Is Fair Use - Change My Mind
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this post was submitted on 23 Jan 2024
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Sure, how many sources would you like?
https://www.justice.gov/archives/jm/criminal-resource-manual-1847-criminal-copyright-infringement-17-usc-506a-and-18-usc-2319
https://scholarship.law.wm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1320&context=wmborj
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_copyright_law_in_the_United_States
https://digitalcommons.law.umaryland.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3622&context=mlr
https://www.lib.purdue.edu/uco/CopyrightBasics/penalties.html
https://www.bu.edu/law/journals-archive/scitech/volume112/andrewsnoteweb.pdf
I have to admit, I did not realize that bare copyright infringement could be criminal, but it also requires criminal intent, so any defense lawyer would argue there was a fair use intent, and even if the civil matter were decided against the defendant, surely the criminal matter would be dropped.
The prosecuting lawyer would argue the intent was in fact criminal and not fair use.
You can't just state "I had a fair use intent", you state your intent (e.g. selling an AI model that creates content for financial gain) and the court determines if that intent was criminal or fair use. And considering criminal copyright law is intended to prevent others from financially profiting from your work, this can be construed as criminal intent. So I would not be so sure that the criminal matter would be dropped so easily.
Of course in this specific case, there's a bit of a grey area, so the first case would not have criminal intent. But if ruled against the AI companies, subsequent cases could argue criminal intent as the AI companies should know by then that what they're doing isn't allowed.
Here's the summary for the wikipedia article you mentioned in your comment:
Criminal copyright laws prohibit the unacknowledged use of another's intellectual property for the purpose of financial gain. Violation of these laws can lead to fines and jail time. Criminal copyright laws have been a part of U. S. laws since 1897, which added a misdemeanor penalty for unlawful performances if "willful and for profit".
^to^ ^opt^ ^out^^,^ ^pm^ ^me^ ^'optout'.^ ^article^ ^|^ ^about^
so where do these say my use is not fair use?
Moving the goal posts again, I see.
fair use is where we started
surely you see the difference between a crime and a tort, now.