Music Artists Coalition Backs NYT in OpenAI Lawsuit

Music Artists Coalition, the artist advocacy organization founded by Irving Azoff, has signed on to an amicus brief supporting the New York Times’ lawsuit against OpenAI. The brief makes the case that the entertainment industry has a proper system for licensing in place to support the use of name, image, and likeness (NIL).

The details:

• The brief was led by Cate Blanchett’s Human Consent Foundation (HCF), which she co-founded to protect against unauthorized use of NIL.

• It came in response to OpenAI’s claim that it couldn’t reasonably clear rights for the use of NIL since it’s a new technological development without dedicated licensing infrastructure.

• Other backers include CAA, the National Association of Voice Actors, Writer, Inc., and the Creative Coalition on AI.

• Individuals who signed on include Anne Hathaway, Emma Thompson, Dan Levy, Ron Howard, Madonna, and Olivia Wilde.

What they said:

• HCF Co-Founder and CEO Nikki Hexum: “Our goal is to ensure that as the market for AI data licensing grows, the humans who create the value in that market are protected and have a meaningful choice. We are not starting from scratch. There is already a functioning market and infrastructure for licensing creative work. We just need to ensure that new AI technology respects those boundaries and choices, including the choice not to participate.”

• Blanchett: “I’ve been working in film and theater for over 30 years, and in that time, the principle has never changed. If someone wants to use my face, my voice, or my image, they ask me first. There is a contract. There is a conversation. This isn’t a new idea or a complicated legal framework, it is simply how we treat each other in this industry. Consent isn’t a barrier to creativity, it is the foundation of it.”