Japan’s Nikkei and Asahi sue Perplexity AI over copyright infringement

Two major Japanese media groups, Nikkei and Asahi Shimbum have jointly filed a lawsuit at a Tokyo District Court against AI firm Perplexity AI over copyright infringement.

This adds to a string of news publishers that have challenged artificial intelligence firms for using their content to train their AI tools. The two media organizations – Nikkei, which owns the Financial Times, together with Asahi Shimbum confirmed the development in a statement on Tuesday.

Publishers demand 2.2 billion yen each from Perplexity

The two media groups are alleging that Perplexity copied and stored their content without permission, overlooking the technical measures that are in place meant to prevent unauthorized use.

They also allege that the AI search engine firm provided incorrect information attributed to their articles, which could potentially hurt their credibility, according to the media groups.

Nikkei and Asahi Shimbum are demanding 2.2 billion yen or $14.7 million in damages each. They also want Perplexity to delete their stored articles.

The media organizations argue that AI firms’ actions of using their content without authorization are taking away their readership and their advertising revenue, subsequently threatening an already fragile business models.

“Perplexity’s actions amount to large-scale, ongoing ‘free riding’ on article content that journalists from both companies have spent immense time and effort to research and write, while Perplexity pays no compensation.”

Nikkei.

“If left unchecked, this situation could undermine the foundation of journalism, which is committed to conveying facts accurately,” added Nikkei in a statement.

This case is not unique to Japan alone but prevalent in the US as well, as news publishers begin to push back against AI groups. In Japan alone, a similar case by another large newspaper – the Yomiuri is another example.

Case reflects growing rift between AI tools and news publishers

Lawyers in Japan say these are “test cases,” adding that while the law in Japan is flexible, it also has some restrictions.

Kensaku Fukui, an expert in copyright law at Kotto Dori, a law firm in Tokyo says while “copyright law is in some ways permissive for AI training for existing copyrighted works … there are some restrictions.”

In the US, the New York Post and Rupert Murdoch’s Dow Jones have also alleged that Perplexity is hurting their businesses buy diverting customers and revenues away from news publishers through using their content to respond to questions on their platforms via its chatbot. They say the AI firm could have paid for the content or directed readers to their websites.

Adding to its mounting woes with news publishers, the BBC also demanded that Perplexity must cease to use their content in a “cease and desist” letter. The broadcaster demanded that Perplexity halt all scraping of its articles, erase any existing copies, and submit “a proposal for financial compensation.”

Other news outlets such as the New York Times and Conde Nast have also delivered similar letters to the AI company asking them to cease using their content without permission.

According to Japan Times, this latest legal action by the two Japanese publishers reflects the growing rift between publishers and AI firms over who controls or profits from the distribution news.

Perplexity has however introduced a revenue-sharing agreement with some publishers including Time, Fortune, and Der Spiegel. The model means Perplexity will pay them whenever an answer referencing their work is given, signaling a shift in how AI startups are seeking commercial partnerships and agreements with publishers.

The AI startup has an estimated 30 million users, the majority of them based in the US.

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