As the US Copyright Office considers the thousands of comments on “copyright law and policy issues raised by artificial intelligence systems,” the Federal Trade Commission drew attention with a press release to their own position on generative AI in the marketplace — suggesting the agency stands ready to protect creators from unfair competition and consumers from non-transparent machine-generated content. From a pure copyright perspective, resolving issues around fair use could take months to formulate and legislate, or more likely years to litigate, while the world changes before creators’ eyes. Importantly, the FTC states more definitively what creators have been waiting […]
Legal
Copyright Office Shares Comments On AI Legal Issues
Earlier this year the US Copyright Office solicited comment on “copyright law and policy issues raised by artificial intelligence systems,” in order to “help assess whether legislative or regulatory steps in this area are warranted.” They have received nearly 10,000 comments, which were recently posted into a searchable archive, including extensive submissions from market leaders such as OpenAI, Google and Meta. Google takes the classic tech company approach, suggesting any issues should be left to the courts (where final adjudication will be glacial). Like all of their peers, they argue that large language models (LLMs) are just math; they “capture […]
All Seasons Press Sues Author Mark Meadows For Lying — Or For Then Telling the Truth?
In a filing that deftly blends unintended comedy with performance art, publisher All Seasons Press sued author Mark Meadows in a Florida state court on Friday, alleging breach of contract in his publishing agreement. They seek payment of approximately $3 million in expenses, potential lost profits, and “reputational harm.” The publisher says that they are acting based on unconfirmed press reports that Meadows testified before a grand jury in exchange for immunity “that neither he nor President Trump actually believed…claims” that the 2020 presidential election was fraudulent. The suit claims the publisher “determined that it was legally and ethically obliged […]
Amazon Sues Scammers Offering Fake Publishing Services
Amazon recently filed suit in the Northern District of California against a number of people and companies “that falsely claim affiliation with Amazon services, including Amazon Publishing and Kindle Direct Publishing.” The company asserts in the complaint: “Defendants run an international scam operation that deceives authors into paying for fraudulent and materially substandard services under the guise that they are affiliated with Amazon by using logos that are confusingly similar or nearly identical to Amazon’s distinctive trademarks. While Amazon has already taken swift action to shut down many of Defendants’ websites, Defendants—at least ten individuals and eight entities—continue to register […]
Gendell and McGuigan Agree to Payment of Some Commissions
There has been one modest point of agreement in the long-running legal disputes between former Foundry Media Partners Yfat Reiss Gendell and Peter McGuigan. The parties agreed on the least contentious issue before the court: Payment to McGuigan of almost $500,000 in commissions earned from 2020 through 2023. Additional commissions of almost $200,000 from 2016 to 2019 are still in dispute, as are the larger claims and counter-claims between the two. The court has scheduled an evidentiary hearing on December 20 regarding the period still in dispute, and to assess damages, if any, for the failure to previously approve those […]
Scribe Media Complaint Revised to Add Enduring Ventures
A class action lawsuit against Scribe Media has been revised to add Enduring Ventures, the company that recently acquired Scribe’s assets. A total of 87 employees, including Alyssa Cormier, Claire Brudner, Marianna Acosta, and Esty Pittman are suing Scribe and Enduring Ventures for violating the WARN Act, which “required Scribe to provide Plaintiffs and Class Members with at least sixty (60) days advance written notice of a mass layoff or plant closure.” The lawsuit is one of several in process against the company, which laid off a large portion of its staff over the summer and then sought a buyer […]