NYT, Economist back collective effort to secure publishers’ AI rights

The New York Times Company (NYT), Agence France-Presse, and The Economist have joined an international initiative seeking greater control over how artificial intelligence companies access and use publishers’ journalism.

The three organizations are among more than 40 publishers and industry groups that have joined the Standards for Publisher Usage Rights (SPUR) coalition. The group, which was launched in February, has grown to more than 80 members spanning over 20 countries. Its founding members include the BBC, Financial Times, Guardian Media Group, and The Associated Press.

SPUR is working on common technical standards and licensing mechanisms intended to help media organizations track the use of their material by AI systems and negotiate compensation for that use. The Guardian said when the initiative was announced that publishers needed a common approach to protect their journalism as AI developers drew on news content and archives.

The coalition’s efforts come amid a broader dispute between media companies and AI developers over copyright and the use of published material. The New York Times (NYT) and Microsoft-backed OpenAI (OPENAI) are among the parties involved in a legal battle over the use of news articles in AI technology.

The Associated Press reported in July that The New York Times (NYT) and other publishers had sought sanctions against OpenAI (OPENAI), accusing it of withholding evidence in the case. OpenAI denied the allegations and said restrictions on sharing ChatGPT logs were intended to safeguard user privacy.

SPUR’s work focuses on developing tools and standards that could make AI companies’ use of publisher content more transparent and support licensing negotiations.

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