Japanese Association Raises Concerns Over Copyright Infringement by U.S. Tech Giants’ AI-Powered Search Engines

Japanese Media Association Raises Concerns Over Copyright Infringement by U.S. Tech Giants’ AI-Powered Search Engines

The Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association has issued a statement raising concerns over potential copyright infringement by artificial intelligence-powered search engines provided by U.S. tech giants such as Google LLC and Microsoft Corp.

According to the association, these AI search engines often display search responses that resemble articles sourced without permission from news organizations. The association has called for companies operating such services to obtain consent from news organizations to ensure the accuracy and reliability of their services.

The association highlighted the issue of “zero-click searches,” where users do not visit the source site, leading to a potential decrease in traffic for news organizations. This could have a negative impact on democracy and culture, as well as on the reporting activities of news organizations.

In addition, the association expressed concerns over potential inaccuracies in responses generated by AI search engines, which could damage the credibility of news organizations by giving the impression that the source articles themselves were erroneous.

The association also warned that providing AI search engine services without obtaining permission to use the source articles could violate the antimonopoly law. The Japan Fair Trade Commission has also suggested that companies operating search engines might hold a dominant position over media companies, posing a problem under the law if usage fees for articles were very low.

In response to these concerns, the association has urged the Japanese government to review and revise laws related to intellectual property, such as the copyright act, as a matter of urgency. It remains to be seen how U.S. tech giants will address these issues raised by the Japanese media association.