- Government and publishing industry open a path to cooperation for an AI model with compensation, authorization, and transparency.
- Lawsuit against Apple for training its AI with protected books rekindles debate and puts pressure on the tech industry.
- Collective agreements and traceability are being promoted to protect creativity without hindering innovation.
- The regulatory framework could be sufficient if implemented with effective mechanisms and real oversight.
The expansion of generative artificial intelligence has raised alarm bells about how creative works are used to train models and what rights should be preserved. At the heart of the debate are the remuneration of the owners, the authorization of the use of content and the transparency on training data, three axes that already condition the adoption of AI in the cultural sphere.
In Spain, Public institutions and the publishing sector are making moves to accommodate innovation with guarantees., while legal proceedings in the United States and Europe are growing. The shared objective is that AI advances in a way ethical and verifiable, without undermining intellectual property or human creativity, a complex but essential balance.
Spain makes its move: cooperation between Culture, Digital Transformation and the sector
In a round table organized by CEDRO under the motto "AI and Intellectual Property: towards a Spanish model that protects authors and publishers", Representatives of the Government and the book world agreed on the priorities: fair remuneration, prior authorization and transparency of systemsUndersecretary of Culture Carmen Páez and Rodrigo Díaz of the State Secretariat for Digitalization and AI emphasized the need for effective solutions involving all stakeholders.
According to the Digital Transformation area, Spain is studying cooperation formulas inspired by European experiences., with references to the agreements reached in Norway and the Netherlands, where mechanisms have been developed to reconcile access to content and creators' rights. The underlying idea is to consolidate negotiated dialogue and collective management as pragmatic avenues.
From the sector, voices such as Marta Sánchez-Nieves (ACE-Translators) and Daniel Fernández (CEDRO and Federation of Publishers' Guilds) They demanded a clear definition of what constitutes a “product” within AI services., and recognize the role of the collective agreements and union action to balance the negotiation. They also called for minimizing negative impacts on creation and translation.
Culture defended that the ordinance already has solid principles - among them, the Protection of creativity as the core of the intellectual property system—although effective channels need to be put in place to ensure compliance. Digital Transformation, for its part, emphasized the goal of ethical and transparent AI, compatible with copyright.
Courts on the move: The Apple case and the domino effect on the industry
In parallel with regulatory advances, Litigation continues to set the agendaApple has been sued in federal court in California for allegedly using Copyrighted books for training Apple IntelligenceNeuroscientists Susana Martinez-Conde and Stephen Macknik maintain that the company may have used "shadow libraries" containing pirated works.
The lawsuit cites two of the plaintiffs' titles—"Champions of Illusion: The Science Behind Mind-Boggling Images and Mystifying Brain Puzzles" and "Sleights of Mind: What the Neuroscience of Magic Reveals About Our Everyday Deceptions"—as among the materials allegedly used. The teachers are seeking financial damages and an order cease any unauthorized use of their works in system training.
The document also points to the financial impact of the Apple Intelligence announcement, noting that, following its presentation, the company would have added more than $ 200.000 billion capitalization the next day. Beyond this specific case, the context is one of growing legal pressure, with similar lawsuits directed at OpenAI, Microsoft, Meta, and Anthropic, among others.
As a high-profile precedent, an agreement has been pointed out whereby Anthropic agreed to pay 1.500 million to close a case brought by a group of authors, a sign that the cultural sector is seeking tangible avenues for redress when their work fuels large models without permission or compensation.
Hot topics of legal debate: licenses, traceability, and collective agreements
The core of the emerging consensus is based on three elements: clear licenses for the use of works, traceability of training data and compensation models that recognize the contributions of creators. Without these pieces, the risk of AI advancing on an opaque foundation increases, generating legal conflicts and mistrust.
For the publishing and translation sectors, it is crucial to document how the tools work, what criteria they apply, and what materials they are trained with, enabling external auditing. In this context, collective management and sectoral agreements They are emerging as practical solutions for authorizing uses and facilitating payments on a large scale.
The Administration reminds us that the legal system already protects creativity, although the challenge is to operationalize these principles with agile and verifiable mechanisms. Success will depend on Innovation and guarantees go hand in hand, preventing the lack of clear rules from hindering development or eroding fundamental rights.
The immediate horizon points to a model in which AI can be trained with authorized and compensated content, under independent transparency and control standards. Thus, the goal is to create an ecosystem in which Technology adds without blurring the value of human work, and where cooperation prevents everything from being settled in the courts.
The outlook is twofold: regulatory dialogue and agreements in Spain to protect authors and publishers, and judicial activity that sets limits on the technology industry when licensing and transparency are lacking; the key will be to transform principles into effective and verifiable practices that make the progress of AI compatible with the rights of those who create the works.
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