The Writers Guild of America wrote a letter to major Hollywood studios this week, warning them to stop using their writers ‘ work to train AI tools without their permission.
” The productions, as rights holders of plays written by WGA people, have done little to prevent this theft”, the group’s leadership said in a letter. They have permitted tech companies to plunder full libraries without getting paid or given any notice. The producers ‘ silence has harmed WGA people”.
According to the club, producers are required to “protect their rights on behalf of writers” under its collective bargaining agreement, and it is urged producers to “take quick legal action against any company that has used our people ‘ works to train AI techniques.”
The email was sent to producers including Netflix, Warner Bros. Discovery, Walt Disney Co., Paramount Global, NBC Universal, Sony Pictures and Amazon MGM Studios. Staff from those productions either declined to comment or didn’t respond to inquiries for comment.
WGA’s notice made reference to an Atlantic article last month that claimed tons of movie and TV shows had subtitles in a data set for AI training used by businesses like Facebook’s Meta and San Francisco-based AI company Anthropic. Anthropic and Meta did not respond to a request for comment right away.
The WGA text comes as some producers are having conversations with tech firms that are creating AI tools. In September,” Hunger Games” workshop Lionsgate , announced a partnership , with AI company Runway. Under that offer, Runway may create a fresh AI model for Lionsgate to assist with behind-the-scenes techniques such as screenwriting.
Another significant Hollywood studios have yet to make official announcements about bargains, in part because AI is a complex, complex field with pending laws and legal issues. Additionally, there are concerns about how studio books may be valued for AI functions as well as issues about protecting intellectual home.
___
© 2024 Los Angeles Times
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
