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Copyright Issues and Resources

These pages are intended to provide contacts and resources that may assist the UM community in effectively navigating copyright concerns.

AI and Copyright Introduction

According to copyright experts, Jonathan Band, and Clifford Lynch, there are three key concerns related to artificial intelligence and copyright. The diagram by Mansfield Library's Copyright Coordinator, Tammy Ravas, summarizes these below:

3 copyright concerns: 1. Training GenAI using Copyrighted Works", "GenAI outputs that potentially infringe copyrighted works", 3. Copyrightability of GenAI Works. An example of first concern is Copying digital artworks to train a GenAI program without rightsholders' permission. An example of the second concern is prompts used to generate images derived from copyrighted training materials. An example of the third is the U.S. Copyright Office states that only works of human authorship qualify for copyright protection. Works cited: Jonathan Band and Clifford Lynch, "AI and Copyright: 3 Issues," Educause, YouTube, 24 July 2024. 17 U.S.C. §106 (1-2); Andersen v. Stability AI Ltd., 700 F. Supp. 3d 853 *; 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 194324 **; 2023 U.S.P.Q.2D (BNA) 1288. Copyright Registration Guidance: Works Containing Material Generated by Artificial Intelligence, 88 Fed. Reg. 16190 (March 16, 2023).

Watch Band and Lynch discuss these three issues for Educause in the video below:

AI and Copyright in the News

Below are some links that will take you to saved searches on the open web as well as within our subscription databases. The first link is a canned Google search that will take you to news stories on artificial intelligence and copyright. Simply click the "search" button underneath the Google logo. The next two links will take you to saved searches within a few of our subscription databases. You'll need your NetID and password in order to access them.

Google Web Search

Artificial Intelligence and Deep Fakes

Not only does artificial intelligence intersect with copyright, it also intersects with other areas of intellectual property as well. One of these areas is "name, image, and likeness" rights, or "right of publicity." Currently, there is no U.S. federal law for right of publicity, but state laws have such protections to various degrees. Intellectual property scholar, Jennifer Rothman, provides a concise definition of how right of publicity laws generally work:

"The right of publicity protects individuals’ identities from being used by others without permission." (Rothman, 2024)

Artificial intelligence intersects with right of publicity by making it much easier for third parties to use an individual's name, image, or likeness, without that person's permission. Within the scope of copyrightable works, someone can use artificial intelligence to create life-like imitations of an individual's voice, or an individual's face without permission (see this helpful explanation of "deep fakes" from University of Virginia's Information Security).

Click on the links below to learn more:

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