Major music labels sue AI startups Suno, Udio for copyright infringement
Music labels including Universal Music Group, Sony Music and Warner Music Group accused AI startups Suno and Udio of violating copyright to train their models in lawsuits lodged by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The suits allege that the two firms used copyrighted sound recordings without authorisation to train their models and generate similar compositions on an "almost unimaginable scale", and that these compositions result in the production of music that competes with and devalues the original works. The labels argue that the two companies' use of their recordings does not qualify as fair use due to its commercial nature and the negative impact on the market for the original recordings , and are seeking damages of up to USD 150,000 per copyrighted work used without permission. They are also requesting injunctions to stop the alleged unauthorised use of their music libraries for the training of third-party AI systems. The legal action is part of a broader effort to challenge AI firms' use of copyrighted material without permission, with the music industry arguing that illegal AI services threaten musicians’ rights and livelihoods and potentially reduce the quality of new music. The legal action follows a similar lawsuit by UMG against Anthropic. System 🤖 Suno Udio 🔗 Operator: Suno; Udio Developer: Suno; Udio Country: USA Sector: Media/entertainment/sports/arts Purpose: Generate music Technology: Generative AI; Text-to-music; Machine learning Issue: Accountability; Copyright; Transparency Legal, regulatory 👩🏼⚖️ UMG RECORDINGS, INC., CAPITOL RECORDS, LLC, SONY MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT, ATLANTIC RECORDING CORPORATION, ATLANTIC RECORDS GROUP LLC, RHINO ENTERTAINMENT LLC, THE ALL BLACKS U.S.A., INC., WARNER MUSIC INTERNATIONAL SERVICES LIMITED, and WARNER RECORDS INC., Plaintiffs, v. SUNO, INC. and JOHN DOES 1-10 (pdf) UMG RECORDINGS, INC., CAPITOL RECORDS, LLC, SONY MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT, ARISTA MUSIC, ARISTA RECORDS LLC, ATLANTIC RECORDING CORPORATION, RHINO ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY, WARNER MUSIC INC., WARNER MUSIC INTERNATIONAL SERVICES LIMITED, WARNER RECORDS INC., WARNER RECORDS LLC, and WARNER RECORDS/SIRE VENTURES LLC, Plaintiffs, v. UNCHARTED LABS, INC., d/b/a Udio.com, and JOHN DOES 1-10 (pdf)
- Date it happened
- 2024-06-01
- Organisation involved
- Suno; Udio
- Product, system or model
- Suno Music Generator; Udio Music Generator
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