Sony, Warner Sue Anthropic Over Alleged Mass Piracy of Song Lyrics
SCMP · 2 SOURCESabout 2 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
Major music publishers including Sony Music Publishing and Warner Chappell Music filed lawsuits against AI company Anthropic on Friday, accusing it of stealing copyrighted lyrics and sheet music to train its Claude AI models. The 35 publishing companies are seeking up to $150,000 per infringed work in statutory damages from the California-based firm and its co-founders Dario Amodei and Benjamin Mann. The lawsuits come as Anthropic reportedly pursues a blockbuster IPO that could value the company at up to $2 trillion.
Key Points
- Sony Music Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, and 33 other publishers filed complaints in California federal court on Friday, accusing Anthropic of illegally obtaining approximately 20,000 copyrighted works
- The plaintiffs allege Anthropic sourced these materials from piracy websites and used them to train its generative AI Claude model without authorization
- Anthropic co-founders Dario Amodei and Benjamin Mann were named as defendants alongside the company, with plaintiffs seeking injunctive relief and statutory damages of up to $150,000 per work
- Anthropic's valuation reached $96.5 billion as of May 2024, and the company is reportedly planning an IPO potentially worth up to $2 trillion
- This lawsuit is the latest in a series of music copyright cases against Anthropic; Concord, Universal Music Publishing, ABKCO, and BMG have all filed separate claims covering works by artists including Bruno Mars, Ariana Grande, and the Rolling Stones
Why It Matters
The case highlights growing legal pushback against AI companies' unauthorized use of copyrighted material for training purposes. "US courts have focused on whether training data was lawfully obtained, finding that acquiring copyrighted material through unauthorized means may itself constitute infringement," said Yu Lin, a partner at Han Kun Law Offices specializing in intellectual property litigation . The outcome could set precedent for how AI companies access and utilize creative works, potentially reshaping the industry as Anthropic pursues its massive public offering .
The case highlights growing legal pushback against AI companies' unauthorized use of copyrighted material for training purposes. "US courts have focused on whether training data was lawfully obtained, finding that acquiring copyrighted material through unauthorized means may itself constitute infringement," said Yu Lin, a partner at Han Kun Law Offices specializing in intellectual property litigation . The outcome could set precedent for how AI companies access and utilize creative works, potentially reshaping the industry as Anthropic pursues its massive public offering .