The Society of Editors has joined the Creative Rights in AI Coalition to call on the government to accept a transparency amendment to the Data Bill that would give rightsholders meaningful transparency over the use of their content by AI machines. 

The Lords backing for the amendment came after the Society and more than 400 creatives signed a letter to the Prime Minister last week urging him to support the creative industry and protect copyright. Signatories to the letter represented a who’s who across the creative industries, including Elton John, David Furnish, Paul McCartney, Florence Welch, Kate Bush, Coldplay,  Antonia Fraser, Tom Stoppard, Richard Curtis, Ian McKellen, Kazuo Ishiguro, Moria Buffini, Russell T Davies, Rachel Whiteread, Shirley Bassey,  Antony Gormley, Emily Eavis, Tom Dixon, John Pawson, Justine Roberts, and dozens of arts and media organisations from across the UK.

Following the passage of the amendment in the Lords, which was won by 272 votes to 125, the Coalition said: “The House of Lords has reflected a chorus of voices across the UK creative economy, tech community, and society who believe rightsholders must be able enforce their rights in the age of AI. The Government must now listen and adopt these modest amendments – designed to give the creative industries a degree of transparency over how their own work is used – when the Bill returns to the Commons.

“It cannot be too soon to protect the livelihoods of 2.4 million UK citizens, allowing the UK to take our place in the global AI supply chain with a dynamic licensing market for creative content.”

The amendment to the Data Bill, which had been tabled by Baroness Kidron, saw her acknowledge the Coalition’s support for her amendment, saying thank you to “[…]the Creative Rights in AI Coalition that has demonstrated the complete uniformity of sentiment across the creative industries, from the biggest record label to the freelance photographer just starting out.”