EU parliament urges new rules to protect copyrighted work

The European Parliament on Tuesday called for new EU-wide rules to protect copyrighted content in the bloc from generative AI use.

The European Parliament on Tuesday called for new EU-wide rules to protect copyrighted content in the bloc from generative AI use.

In a non-binding report adopted by a majority, lawmakers said European Union copyright law should apply to all systems of generative AI on the bloc's market.

"We need clear rules for the use of copyright-protected content for AI training. Legal certainty would let AI developers know which content can be used and how licences can be obtained," the MEP pushing the report, Axel Voss, said.

The demand comes ahead of a review of the EU's copyright rules this summer.

The parliament also called on the European Commission, the EU's executive, to ensure use of copyrighted material by generative AI is "fairly remunerated".

The European Composer and Songwriter Alliance welcomed the report and urged the commission to "duly take into account" the parliament's recommendations.