- AI-generated music poses a host of new legal challenges for artists and rights holders.
- With the proliferation of AI songs, copyright and publicity law is a top priority for entertainment lawyers.
- Here are four key takeaways from a recent panel discussion on AI music hosted by law firm Manat.
AI-generated tracks simulating artists such as Drake and The Weeknd have spread all over social media in recent weeks, with record labels, publishers and streaming platforms weighing the potential business implications for musicians. I am compelled to do so.
Some artists, like Grimes, are embracing technology by setting up AI content creation tools to benefit from the use of voice. Other companies, such as Ice Cube, reject the technology entirely.
Adoption of this technology is on the rise, regardless of what artists think. Entertainment attorneys plan strategies on how to protect their clients, including using existing technology designed to detect and enforce copyright protection under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and invoking publicity rights laws doing.
“Unfortunately, music is sometimes the canary in a coal mine with new technology,” Jordan Bromley, entertainment group leader at Manat Phelps & Phillips LLP, said during a panel discussion hosted by the company on May 9. said.
Bromley was also included in Manat’s panel. his colleagues Nathaniel Bach and Sarah Moses; Mitch Glazier, President and CEO of the Recording Industry Association of America. Jeffrey Bennett is General Counsel for the Hollywood Actors and Music Artists Guild SAG-AFTRA.
Here are four key takeaways from our panelists regarding the legal and business challenges of AI in music:
1. Understanding AI training models will be key to enforcing copyright law
Technology exists today to identify copyright infringement of a song post-release.
The Verge reported that Universal Music Group used DMCA detection tools to file takedown requests for AI-generated tracks mimicking Drake and The Weeknd, including traceable tags from producer Metro Boomin, for example. .
However, the exact ways in which trained AI-generated music based on a human artist’s body of work can violate copyright law have yet to be defined.
Manat’s Bach said, “We don’t always have information about how a particular AI song is made and how the software works.” “Finding out the internal working processes, what was done by AI, what was done by humans, and for what purpose and where the rubber meets the road is really central. prize.”
Copyright rules surrounding AI training models are currently being litigated in other parts of the art world. Getty Images and several visual artists have separately sued AI image generation companies, including Stable Diffusion, Midjourney and Stability AI, alleging their work was used in training programs.
During Manat’s panel discussion, RIAA’s Mitch Glazier raised the idea that AI models trained on existing songs should legally be defined as mechanical duplication, which would require a license. raised.
2. Publicity rights may play an important role in AI litigation
The Publicity Rights Act, which protects the right of individuals to control the commercial use of their personal characteristics, could be a useful tool for lawyers seeking to protect artists from AI-generated counterfeits.
A monetized song with an AI-generated voice that mimics a famous artist can violate publicity rights in certain states.
“You have to think about what the intentions and commercial interests are for the person putting it out there, and then what the commercial implications are for the market itself and for the artists of the other works they’re putting out there. said RIAA’s Glazier.
Because publicity rights laws are enacted at the state level, they can take time to come into force and are not a perfect solution, lawyers said.
“It’s a patchwork of state laws,” says SAG-AFTRA’s Bennett. “It’s time to take it out and think about what you can do with it.”
3. Streaming platforms like Spotify and YouTube will play a big role in the future of AI
The sheer volume of AI songs spewing out onto streaming platforms can pose a detection challenge for rights holders. Music platforms such as Spotify and YouTube may place limits on the spread of AI music, lawyers said.
“Even if you have the tools, you have to think carefully about enforcement because this is a whole new game of Whack-A-Mole,” said Bromley of Manat.
Apart from this, business incentives between platforms and rights holders may not be aligned.
Some streaming apps may promote adding AI-generated tracks to their libraries as a way to cut costs by reducing royalty payments to human artists, record labels, and publishers.
“if you [digital streaming platform] If you want to add revenue, create AI technology that can create functional music, add it all to a playlist, and 10% of the total content cost goes towards revenue,” said Bromley. Working with the music industry to be on the right side of history, they wouldn’t do that. ”
Record labels are already looking for ways to regulate how streaming platforms work with AI tools. Billboard reports that Universal Music Group sent a letter to Spotify and Apple Music in March urging them to stop artificial intelligence companies from using their catalogs to train AI models.
4. AI is not inherently bad and has the potential to produce new creative works in the music field
While much of Manat’s panel focused on the risks AI poses to the music industry, there were also some optimistic views on how the technology could benefit musicians.
“The flip side of this coin is that if properly embraced and used properly and responsibly, this is a great creative tool,” Bromley said.
AI-generated works that share revenue with artists, such as Grimes’ Elf.tech tool, could result in new revenue streams for performers. Universal Music Group on Tuesday announced a partnership with AI music startup Endel to enable its artists and labels to harness the power of AI to create “soundscapes for everyday activities such as sleep, relaxation and focus.” Announced.
“If you look at history, those who decide to partner and work with the music community have thrived with it,” said RIAA’s Glazier. “We don’t hear much about people today who have taken advantage of loopholes in the law to try to pay less or decide not to pay at all.”
