Yahoo Finance Washington pushes for new AI rules protecting artists as Hollywood backlash mounts
Senators are pushing to introduce a bill as early as June that would set rules governing the use of artificial intelligence in the music and movie industries, an effort that coincides with new AI tensions roiling Hollywood.
The NO FAKES Act — which stands for Nurture Originals, Foster Art, and Keep Entertainment Safe — is a bipartisan proposal that would stop individuals or companies from using AI to produce an unauthorized digital replica of their likeness or their voice.
The lead sponsor is Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), chair of the Senate Intellectual Property Subcommittee.
He and Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) are still hashing out details with artists, the recording industry and the movie industry, according to Senate aides.
"We're going to have to do a national AI bill or the world will not be the same as we know it," Klobuchar said.
"Songwriters, actors, and our incredibly talented creative community deserve the right to own their voice, image, and likeness," added Blackburn, the leading Republican on the bill.
The concerns about the effect of AI on the entertainment industry intensified this past week due to a conflict between actress Scarlett Johansson and ChatGPT-maker OpenAI.
She accused OpenAI of using an "eerily similar" voice to hers for its new chatbot even though she turned down the company's request to use her voice. OpenAI has since scrapped using the voice but did not indicate why.
Music artists are also increasingly concerned there is little protection for their own names, likenesses, and voices being used to create AI-generated songs.
Singers Ariana Grande and Lainey Wilson are among those who have already had their voices mimicked without their permission, while last year an anonymous artist put out a song called "Heart on my Sleeve" that falsely impersonated the voices of Drake and The Weeknd.
"The toothpaste is out of the tube already," said musician Sheryl Crow earlier this month while attending an annual lobbying push in Washington known as Grammys on the Hill.
"We're going to have to try to figure out some way to create parameters and guardrails. We've seen artists already whose voices have been used after they've passed on. We're also seeing artists being used when they have nothing to do with something that's been put out, and that's terrifying."
There are some major questions for Senators to hammer out before any national AI bill can be considered for a vote.
They have to figure out whether this law would preempt a certain patchwork of state laws that are already in place, such as the ELVIS Act in Tennessee.
They also have to decide how long to restrict licensing and transfers of an artist’s digital replica and how long postmortem rights would last.
A draft version of the bill would extend authorization for digital replication to the heirs, executors, or assignees of a deceased person for a period of 70 years, which is modeled after the equivalent term for copyright protection.
Some in the movie industry want zero years, while some in the music industry believe it should last in perpetuity. Others think it should survive only as long as the work is being commercialized.
The movie industry supports protecting artists from the unauthorized replication of their likenesses and voices but has cautioned lawmakers to be careful about not limiting First Amendment rights and regulating the content of speech.
"It will take very careful drafting to accomplish the goal of addressing these harms without inadvertently chilling legitimate, constitutionally protected uses of technologies to enhance storytelling in our industry," Ben Sheffner, senior vice president of the Motion Picture Association, said on April 30 while testifying before the Senate Subcommittee on Intellectual Property.
Sheffner pointed to an example of the movie "Forrest Gump," starring Tom Hanks. Filmmakers used digital-replica technology at the time to portray Gump's interactions with historical presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Richard Nixon, and that didn’t require consent from heirs.
The concern is that if consent were required, estates would have the ability to censor portrayals they don’t like, which would violate the First Amendment.
The man in charge of the Grammys, Recording Academy chief executive Harvey Mason Jr., is encouraged by the discussions in Washington led by Senator Coons.
"It was wonderful to see how receptive people were from both sides of the aisle on the issue of protecting creators' image, voice, and likeness," Mason said after meeting with the White House and lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
The House has its own bill underway to combat AI offenses in the entertainment industry called the No AI Fraud Act, which also aims to establish a federal framework to protect one’s voice and likeness.
A Senate Republican aide told Yahoo Finance that conversations have started with the House but are in the early stages as details of the Senate bill get hammered out.
It's unclear what role Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) will play in this potential legislation.
He introduced a long-awaited road map this month detailing actions congressional committees should take to address the advancements and risks of artificial intelligence.
While the new road map doesn’t reference any specific AI entertainment legislation, it does reference a need for legislation that protects against the unauthorized use of one’s name, image, likeness and voice consistent with First Amendment principles.
In general, Schumer isn’t looking at trying to push through a full legislative AI package but more likely is looking to pass legislation by pieces. Some sorts of standalone legislation could get attached to other must pass legislation.
With six months to go in the current Congress in an election year, Senate aides are still optimistic that something could pass.
"There's going to be great innovations with AI, but we have to allow people to own their own voices and their own artistic works," Klobuchar said.
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