Performing arts consortium Equity launches campaign for performers’ rights to artificial intelligence (AI).
They hope to persuade the UK government to introduce laws prohibiting companies from using artificial intelligence-based performances – based on the voices and likenesses of real performers – without their permission.
Under current UK law, performers’ rights extend to the ability to give consent to the recording of a performance and the right to control the use of the recordings and any reproductions.
However, AI technology is outside the scope of this protection because it “reproduces performances without creating a ‘record’ or ‘copy’,” according to the syndicate. Additionally, in a survey of 430 Equity members, 79% of those who did business said Artificial Intelligence They did not feel they had a “full understanding” of their rights before signing their contracts.
Meanwhile, 93% of audio artists who responded to the survey said they were concerned that AI poses a threat to job opportunities. According to Equity, AI is increasingly being used in the audio-visual sector, from audiobooks to digital avatars.
Equity’s new campaign, titled Stop AI Stealing the Show, is backed by actor Talulah Riley (“St Trinian’s”), politician Lord Clement-Jones, who is the co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Artificial Intelligence, and Canadian voiceover artist Biff Standing.
It won a settlement after it sued TikTok, saying the company used its voice for the text-to-speech feature without its permission based on recordings it made to another company years ago.
“In 2018, I was hired to do a text-to-speech job for a translation app,” Standing said. “But in 2020, these recordings were used for the first-ever English voice-to-text text-to-speech on TikTok, which was not my customer. The fear of taking on a multibillion dollar company was a bit overwhelming, but it was due to the fact that it was just a mistake and I had to To defend myself – my audio files were copyrighted and I owned them, so TikTok didn’t have permission to use them.”
“After speaking to a lawyer, a complaint was lodged,” she continued. “We came to a very friendly agreement with TikTok last year and they settled. As a voice actor, I feel it is a smart business decision to understand and engage with AI, and now I only work with the companies I control where my voice is licensed. AI is here to stay — not going to Disappears “.
Equity has also warned that artists who provide voice and likeness to AI work are “not compensated fairly” or sometimes at all, and performers are often required to sign non-disclosure agreements that obscure the nature of the job.
“The explosion of artificial intelligence across the entertainment industry is a major and growing concern for sound artists and other performers,” said Paul W. Fleming, General Secretary of Equity. “We work hard to protect our members as bosses try to increase profits by replacing skilled professionals with artificial intelligence systems; but without government action to modernize UK law, we could see miserable consequences for performers and lasting damage to our world-leading industry. Workers everywhere need to take action. Actions on AI — from checkout procedures to feature films, and from call centers to video games — to ensure this new technology enhances their working lives, not just the bottom line for bosses.”
Talula Riley, Equity Member, added: “Advances in AI technology are coming very quickly and it is important for those in the entertainment industry to be aware of the potential changes in our livelihoods. As a performer, it is imperative that my voice and my image are my own, no matter how easy and cheap it may be. The cost of digitally copying these things. I think performers should be fairly rewarded for the content we create.”
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