The publishers contend that OpenAI and Microsoft’s systems can reproduce portions of their reporting, generate close paraphrases and synthesize information from their articles into answers that can compete with the original publications.
They also argue that those responses can reduce the incentive for users to visit their websites or pay for subscriptions because the AI products may provide similar information directly.
“Like a snake eating its own tail, generative AI that is trained on painstakingly researched, expensive-to-produce content threatens to destroy the very news organizations by competing directly with them through AI-generated substitutive content,” the complaint states. “If Defendants are allowed to succeed, independent journalism of the kind Plaintiffs produce will struggle to survive.”
The lawsuit further alleges that OpenAI and Microsoft removed or modified copyright-related information associated with the publishers’ work, including article titles, author names and copyright notices.
Seattle Times President and CEO Alan Fisco said the publication spends millions of dollars each year producing its journalism and needs to prevent that material from being used without authorization or payment.
OpenAI said its models are trained using publicly available information and that its approach is based on fair use, but it did not specifically address the allegations in the new case.
Microsoft said it was surprised by the lawsuit and acknowledged the importance of local journalism, while indicating that it was open to discussing ways to resolve disputes of this kind.
Newsday and The Seattle Times are bringing claims under the Copyright Act, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the Lanham Act, along with claims under New York and Washington state law. They are seeking damages and court orders aimed at stopping the alleged conduct.
The publishers are also asking for the destruction of copies of their copyrighted material, as well as datasets or AI models that incorporate that content.
The case follows similar litigation from other publishers and copyright holders challenging how AI companies obtain and use protected material. The New York Times sued OpenAI and Microsoft in 2023, while other cases have targeted companies including Anthropic and Meta Platforms.
Newsday and The Seattle Times say their case is ultimately about whether AI companies can build commercial systems using journalism without first obtaining permission or providing compensation. That question is now at the center of a widening set of legal disputes between publishers and developers of generative AI.
This analysis is based on reporting from Yahoo Finance courtesy of Investing.com.
Image courtesy of Ad Gully.
This article was generated with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy and quality.
