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How Likely FTC's Comments On Copyright & AI May Become Policy

By Isha Marathe
January 01, 2024

Artificial intelligence developers have come under copyright fire from writers, artists and the U.S. Copyright Office (USCO) nearly since the time generative AI was introduced into mainstream society in 2022.

About a year later another player, well-known for its interest in regulating Big Tech, is throwing its hat into the AI copyright infringement ring: the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). In a comment submitted to the USCO in October, the FTC stated it intends to use its authority to investigate potential copyright cases against AI developers. The agency wrote that the misuse of training data like infringing on a work's copyright license is tantamount to unfair competition, thus implicating consumer protection with copyright policy and securing the agency's jurisdiction in the regulatory space.

But the comment didn't stop there. The FTC added that §5 of the FTC Act provides it authority to investigate copyright practices even if there is no copyright infringement on the part of AI creators.

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