CNN Sues Perplexity Over 17,000 Scraped Stories for AI Training
CNN is suing AI company Perplexity for allegedly copying and distributing over 17,000 CNN stories and other content to train its products, marking CNN's first legal action against an AI company for copyright protection. This lawsuit is part of a broader industry effort by news providers to secure compensation from AI platforms using their content for training data. Perplexity's Chief Communications Officer stated that "You can't copyright facts" in response to the allegations.
Key Takeaways
- CNN accuses Perplexity of illegally scraping more than 17,000 CNN stories, photos, and videos for AI training.
- This is CNN's first legal filing against an AI company, marking a TV network's involvement in such copyright cases.
- News organizations, including the New York Times and Dow Jones, have filed similar lawsuits against Perplexity.
- Perplexity's Chief Communications Officer, Jesse Dwye, stated in response, "You can't copyright facts."
- Other publishers like Time and USA Today Co. have instead opted for content licensing deals with Perplexity.
Why It Matters
CNN's lawsuit directly challenges how AI platforms source training data, asserting that content creators deserve compensation. This move intensifies the ongoing legal battle between media companies and AI developers, expanding beyond print publishers to include television networks. The outcome will influence future business models for news content in the age of generative AI, potentially setting precedents for licensing fees or content restrictions. Watch for the court's interpretation of fair use versus copyright infringement regarding large-scale data scraping for AI training.
Read full article at ibc.org