The Autorité de la Concurrence in France has hit tech giant Google with a €250 million fine due to its failure to comply with copyright regulations.
This move marks the fourth decision in a four-year-long investigation into Google’s practices related to copyright and AI training.
Google’s Misuse of Media Content for AI Training
Google found itself in hot water after it was revealed that the company had used content from press agencies and publishers to train its AI tool, Bard, now known as Gemini.
The French Authority stated that Google didn’t notify the content creators or seek approval for using their materials in training Bard.
The authority emphasized that Google’s failure to provide a mechanism for press agencies and publishers to opt out of having their content used by Bard hindered their ability to negotiate fair compensation.
Consequently, Alphabet Inc., Google LLC, Google Ireland Ltd, and Google France have been collectively fined €250 million.
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Google opted not to contest the findings and offered corrective measures to address the identified breaches. This development underscores the ongoing debate surrounding the ethical use of media content in training artificial intelligence models.
Media Outlets Take Legal Action Against AI Developers
This incident with Google isn’t the only legal entanglement between media outlets and AI developers. The New York Times recently filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, Google’s competitor, alleging the unauthorized use of its content to train automated chatbots, specifically OpenAI’s LLM, ChatGPT.
The lawsuit, filed in a Federal District Court in Manhattan, accuses OpenAI and its partner, Microsoft, of using millions of articles from The New York Times to train their chatbots.
The Times contends that this unauthorized use undermines its position as a trusted source of information and seeks damages for the infringement.
While the lawsuit doesn’t specify a monetary demand, it highlights the substantial damages incurred due to the unlawful use of copyrighted material. Additionally, it calls for the destruction of any chatbot models and training data derived from The New York Times’ content.
These legal battles underscore the growing importance of ethical considerations in AI development and the need for clear regulations to protect the rights of content creators.