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https://theconversation.com/an-academic-publisher-has-struck-an-ai-data-deal-with-microsoft-without-their-authors-knowledge-235203>
"In May, a multibillion-dollar UK-based multinational called Informa announced
in a trading update that it had signed a deal with Microsoft involving “access
to advanced learning content and data, and a partnership to explore AI expert
applications”. Informa is the parent company of Taylor & Francis, which
publishes a wide range of academic and technical books and journals, so the
data in question may include the content of these books and journals.
According to reports published last week, the authors of the content do not
appear to have been asked or even informed about the deal. What’s more, they
say they had no opportunity to opt out of the deal, and will not see any money
from it.
Academics are only the latest of several groups of what we might call content
creators to take umbrage at having their work ingested by the generative AI
models currently racing to hoover up the products of human culture. Newspapers,
visual artists and record labels are already taking AI companies to court.
While it’s unclear how Informa will react to the rumblings of discontent, the
deal is a reminder to authors to be aware of the contractual terms of the
publishing agreements they sign."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
