The UK Government has issued an update confirming a move away from a proposed copyright exception that would have allowed technology companies to train AI models on copyrighted content without a license. The shift reflects positions advocated by Cambridge and other copyright holders and relates to the UK’s creative industries.
The consultation launched in December 2024 outlined a preferred option to introduce a text and data mining (TDM) exception into UK copyright law. Under that proposal, technology companies would have been permitted to use copyrighted material for AI training unless rights holders opted out.
The proposal sparked opposition from stakeholders in the creative industries. A total of 11,520 responses to the consultation were submitted by creators, rights holders, developers of AI models and applications, academics, researchers, cultural heritage organizations, and legal professionals.
Support for the exception with an opt-out mechanism was recorded among 3% of respondents. Eighty-one percent of respondents supported strengthening copyright requirements so that licensing is required for copies made during AI development.
The report concluded that the exception proposal was rejected by the majority of the creative industries and confirmed that the government no longer has a preferred option. The government has moved away from allowing unlicensed use of copyrighted material for AI training. The reasons cited for the policy shift include increased legal actions by copyright holders against AI companies, new transparency regulations in the European Union and parts of the United States, and expansion of licensing markets for rights holders and AI developers.
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