Five Canadian news media outlets sue OpenAI for copyright breach

Five Canadian news media organizations have brought legal action against ChatGPT’s owner, OpenAI, alleging that ChatGPT consistently violates online privacy laws.

The lawsuit filed on Friday is one of several that authors, visual artists, music publishers, and other copyright owners have filed against OpenAI and other tech companies for using data to train generative AI systems. Microsoft is OpenAI’s major backer.

In a statement, Torstar, Postmedia, The Globe and Mail, The Canadian Press, and CBC/Radio-Canada said OpenAI was scraping large swaths of content to develop its products without getting permission or compensating content owners.

“Journalism is in the public interest. It is not OpenAI’s policy to use the journalism of other companies for profit. It’s illegal”, they said.

A lawsuit against OpenAI, which claimed it had abused articles from news outlets Raw Story and AlterNet, was dismissed on November 7 by a New York federal judge.

The five Canadian companies demanded damages from OpenAI and a permanent injunction in an 84-page statement of claim filed in Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice.

“OpenAI chose to brazenly misappropriate the News Media Companies’ valuable intellectual property and convert it without consent or consideration,” they said in the filing.

“The News Media Companies have never received from OpenAI any form of consideration, including payment, in exchange for OpenAI’s use of their Works”.

OpenAI responded that its models were based on publicly accessible data and adhered to fair use and related international copyright laws that were fair for creators.

“We collaborate closely with news publishers, including in the display, attribution and links to their content in ChatGPT search, and offer them easy ways to opt out should they so desire”, a spokesperson said via email.