3 Count: Dancing with Sony

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1: Sony Music Settles Whitney Houston Biopic Lawsuit Over Alleged Unpaid Song Licenses

First off today, Daniel Tencer at Music Business Worldwide reports that Sony Music Entertainment has settled a lawsuit over the 2022 Whitney Houston biopic Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody.

SME and its label, Arista, sued various companies involved with the film, saying they didn’t pay synchronization license fees despite signing an agreement before the film was released. The filmmakers, however, cited a series of challenges in making the payment, most notably waiting for a tax credit and needing permission from an investor.

However, the issue has been resolved, with SME asking the court to dismiss the case with prejudice. The settlement terms are unknown, but SME sought $150,000 per track used in the film, a total of $3.6 million.

2: Asian News International Sues OpenAI For Alleged Copyright Infringement

Next up today, Chris McKay at Maginative reports that Asian News International (ANI) has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging that it committed copyright infringement by training its models using their content.

ANI is one of the largest news agencies in India. According to the lawsuit, OpenAI’s ChatGPT system was trained using ANI content without permission. To make matters worse, they claim that the AI has fabricated news attributed to them, including fake interviews with celebrities.

The lawsuit seeks 20 million rupees ($236,000) in damages. They join a cadre of US media companies in filing lawsuits against US AI companies. Major hearings in the case are expected in January, which could significantly impact how AI is trained and used in India.

3: HarperCollins Is Asking Authors to License Their Books for AI Training

Finally today, Jay Peters at The Verge reports that publisher HarperCollins has reached an agreement with an unnamed AI company and is asking nonfiction authors to allow their works to be used for AI training.

The system is opt-in, meaning authors must agree for their books to be used. They are also compensated for the use, with one author reporting an offer of $2,500. The same author also noted that the agreement is time-limited, covering three years.

Despite the better terms, many authors are upset with the publisher. Many authors have already filed lawsuits against AI companies to prevent the use of their work in AI training, and even more see HarperCollins’s move as a betrayal.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

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