Dua Lipa, Sir Elton John and Florence Welch are among a list of stars calling on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to update existing copyright laws to protect them from AI.
A letter signed by more than 400 British musicians, writers and artists and addressed to the Prime Minister says failing to give them that protection would mean them 'giving away' their work to tech firms.
Flicks.co.nz editor Steve Newall explains what the letter calls for - and why AI doesn't follow the same regulations as other platforms.
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudgin
from News Talks EDB.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
It is entertainment time now a little bit of Florence
in the machine there with Delilah and Florence is one
of the four hundred artists who have signed a letter
to the UK Prime Minister seeking.
Speaker 3 (00:26):
Better protection from AI. Joining me now to t us
a bit more about it is Steve Newill, editor at
Flickstar co dot in Ze good morning.
Speaker 4 (00:32):
Good morning. AI is very much topic djour I think
through the creative sectors everywhere, but particularly in the United
Kingdom where the labor government seems quite came to advance
maybe not the most artist friendly policy when it comes
to copyright works and AI being trained on it. Paul
McCartney do a Leaper, Alton John Coldplayer among those four
(00:55):
hundred artists that have published an open letter to Prime
Minister Keir Starmer urging him not to give their work away.
In particular, they note that cop rights the lifeblood of
their professions, and one starma that the proposed legal change
will threaten Britain's status as a leading creative power. It
(01:16):
doesn't seem like this is really going to move the
needle much. I think it just keeps the conversation in
the public eye a bit more. The UK. The government
in the UK is saying that the consultation process they
already have underway is the correct process for these conversations.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
So they wanted to be transparent, don't they? About the
copyright owners and AI using their material to train their
AIS and what.
Speaker 4 (01:41):
It sounds like the UK government's proposed as an opt
out system, so you AI companies about to use all
copyrighted material unless the copyright owner specifically says no. But
the mechanism for that hasn't been designed or announced yet.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
But it's weird, isn't that? Because I thought we had
copyright law so that we held people accountable. Is AI
is not part of part of it?
Speaker 4 (02:05):
My personal opinion is that the British governments bought the
line of generative AI as being this incredible thing that's
just on the cusp of being something truly incredible and
falling over themselves to create, you know, the most friendly
regulatory environment.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Gotcha, Okay?
Speaker 4 (02:22):
I get I think the maybe maybe based on the
idea that the first Western economy that engages successfully with
AI like this will have an economic.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
Advantage, Okay, But then of course the issue is if
you put some restrictional regulation in place around that in
the UK, then don't the AI companies just go somewhere
else to do the work and.
Speaker 4 (02:49):
To a large extent, horses to a large extent of
the horses bolted. So there's you know, all of the
existing work that exists that's copyrighted has probably been scraped
by AI without permission. So there's sort of this retrospective right,
I guess, right to know whether your work that you've
made has been used to create someone else's product without
(03:11):
your permission or say so yeah, and then there'll be
the sort of ongoing generation of new work. But I
think this is the first sort of selver of like, hey,
you've built these big things, we need to consider it
now because it's only going to get more complex to
untangle the rights issues and things like that. Who controls it?
Speaker 3 (03:30):
You know, It's like we learned nothing from the music industry,
from Napster, from all those other things in the past.
Speaker 4 (03:38):
I think from two thousand and one a space to see.
Speaker 3 (03:42):
We're a little slow, slow learners when it comes to
the tech things. But I mean I suppose the hope
is that if they're starting to talk about it, we
hope that all other governments are talking about it and
everybody kind of comes up with a similar plan to
transfers out protect our creative industries. I'm going to stick
with them. The French Film Festival is getting underway this month.
Speaker 4 (04:00):
Yes, this is a biggie. This is an increasingly significant
festival on the annual calendar here and al to. This
kicks off from May the twenty eighth, so this month
later this month of Franco friendly lineup of films aboo
traveling around New zealand touching down in twenty four towns
and cities. I can heartily recommend one of their centerpiece films,
(04:20):
an adaptation of the Count of Monte Cristo, the classic
revenge Caper maybe the original Bruce Wayne as the Count
of Monte Cristo. With the production budget of around eighty
million dollars. Wow, this is a big French blockbuster production
period or yeah period and it just it took me
(04:40):
back to talking back to school in a good way
of love of novel and seeing how many things have
been influenced by the Count of Monte Cristo. It's a
really good adaptation of it.
Speaker 3 (04:52):
Oh fantastic. Of course we're going to talk to Robin
Malcolm after eleven and she is in London for the
bath does. I'm very I think this has been an
amazing thing for the show to be nominated.
Speaker 4 (05:06):
It's really significant, and after the party has been it's
taught the whole world what we already knew about Robin
Malcolm right, phenomenal. She's an overnight sensation outside of New Zealand. Yeah.
So this is the awards taking place tomorrow morning at
six am. You can watch it on Sky Arts twenty
(05:27):
twenty five, baft to TV Awards and after the party.
I don't know if this is a very likely contender
to win tomorrow, but I think the definitely to be
super special to just be nominated as an outstanding production
out of New Zealand.
Speaker 3 (05:44):
Thank you so much, Steve.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
For more from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudkin, listen
live to News Talks it'd be from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudgin
from News Talks EDB.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
It is entertainment time now a little bit of Florence
in the machine there with Delilah and Florence is one
of the four hundred artists who have signed a letter
to the UK Prime Minister seeking.
Speaker 3 (00:26):
Better protection from AI. Joining me now to t us
a bit more about it is Steve Newill, editor at
Flickstar co dot in Ze good morning.
Speaker 4 (00:32):
Good morning. AI is very much topic djour I think
through the creative sectors everywhere, but particularly in the United
Kingdom where the labor government seems quite came to advance
maybe not the most artist friendly policy when it comes
to copyright works and AI being trained on it. Paul
McCartney do a Leaper, Alton John Coldplayer among those four
(00:55):
hundred artists that have published an open letter to Prime
Minister Keir Starmer urging him not to give their work away.
In particular, they note that cop rights the lifeblood of
their professions, and one starma that the proposed legal change
will threaten Britain's status as a leading creative power. It
(01:16):
doesn't seem like this is really going to move the
needle much. I think it just keeps the conversation in
the public eye a bit more. The UK. The government
in the UK is saying that the consultation process they
already have underway is the correct process for these conversations.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
So they wanted to be transparent, don't they? About the
copyright owners and AI using their material to train their
AIS and what.
Speaker 4 (01:41):
It sounds like the UK government's proposed as an opt
out system, so you AI companies about to use all
copyrighted material unless the copyright owner specifically says no. But
the mechanism for that hasn't been designed or announced yet.
Speaker 3 (01:56):
But it's weird, isn't that? Because I thought we had
copyright law so that we held people accountable. Is AI
is not part of part of it?
Speaker 4 (02:05):
My personal opinion is that the British governments bought the
line of generative AI as being this incredible thing that's
just on the cusp of being something truly incredible and
falling over themselves to create, you know, the most friendly
regulatory environment.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Gotcha, Okay?
Speaker 4 (02:22):
I get I think the maybe maybe based on the
idea that the first Western economy that engages successfully with
AI like this will have an economic.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
Advantage, Okay, But then of course the issue is if
you put some restrictional regulation in place around that in
the UK, then don't the AI companies just go somewhere
else to do the work and.
Speaker 4 (02:49):
To a large extent, horses to a large extent of
the horses bolted. So there's you know, all of the
existing work that exists that's copyrighted has probably been scraped
by AI without permission. So there's sort of this retrospective right,
I guess, right to know whether your work that you've
made has been used to create someone else's product without
(03:11):
your permission or say so yeah, and then there'll be
the sort of ongoing generation of new work. But I
think this is the first sort of selver of like, hey,
you've built these big things, we need to consider it
now because it's only going to get more complex to
untangle the rights issues and things like that. Who controls it?
Speaker 3 (03:30):
You know, It's like we learned nothing from the music industry,
from Napster, from all those other things in the past.
Speaker 4 (03:38):
I think from two thousand and one a space to see.
Speaker 3 (03:42):
We're a little slow, slow learners when it comes to
the tech things. But I mean I suppose the hope
is that if they're starting to talk about it, we
hope that all other governments are talking about it and
everybody kind of comes up with a similar plan to
transfers out protect our creative industries. I'm going to stick
with them. The French Film Festival is getting underway this month.
Speaker 4 (04:00):
Yes, this is a biggie. This is an increasingly significant
festival on the annual calendar here and al to. This
kicks off from May the twenty eighth, so this month
later this month of Franco friendly lineup of films aboo
traveling around New zealand touching down in twenty four towns
and cities. I can heartily recommend one of their centerpiece films,
(04:20):
an adaptation of the Count of Monte Cristo, the classic
revenge Caper maybe the original Bruce Wayne as the Count
of Monte Cristo. With the production budget of around eighty
million dollars. Wow, this is a big French blockbuster production
period or yeah period and it just it took me
(04:40):
back to talking back to school in a good way
of love of novel and seeing how many things have
been influenced by the Count of Monte Cristo. It's a
really good adaptation of it.
Speaker 3 (04:52):
Oh fantastic. Of course we're going to talk to Robin
Malcolm after eleven and she is in London for the
bath does. I'm very I think this has been an
amazing thing for the show to be nominated.
Speaker 4 (05:06):
It's really significant, and after the party has been it's
taught the whole world what we already knew about Robin
Malcolm right, phenomenal. She's an overnight sensation outside of New Zealand. Yeah.
So this is the awards taking place tomorrow morning at
six am. You can watch it on Sky Arts twenty
(05:27):
twenty five, baft to TV Awards and after the party.
I don't know if this is a very likely contender
to win tomorrow, but I think the definitely to be
super special to just be nominated as an outstanding production
out of New Zealand.
Speaker 3 (05:44):
Thank you so much, Steve.
Speaker 1 (05:46):
For more from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudkin, listen
live to News Talks it'd be from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio
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