Musicians May Lose Fifth of Income to AI in Three Years: Report

The first global economic study into the effect of AI on the creative industries suggested that those working in the music industry could lose over a fifth of their income in the next three years.

The International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) revealed the conclusions of the report, which, they said, emphasizes the need for urgent new legislation to protect their five million members and others.

The study suggested that, if new laws aren’t introduced, corporations will have the ability to continue developing AI music from poorly-protected copyrighted material created by humans, and will make more money than ever before out of that material, without having to share any with artists.

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As a result, corporate profits could explode, while artists – and many others working in the creative industries – could see their income fall by over 20 per cent by 2028. By that time, the CISAC report said, the AI industry is expected to have expanded from $3.1 billion worldwide to $67.7 billion.

The key argument in the matter concerns how AI models are trained. It’s argued that if a model is given access to an artist’s work, and then generates its own version of that work, the new work is entirely the property of the AI’s owners, and the artist whose work was used to train the AI has no ownership rights. That position is disputed by many artists, who face having their material used and re-used without enjoying a share of profits.

AI Should Enhance Creativity, Not Replace it – Bjorn Ulvaeus

ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus, the current CISAC president, identified upcoming legislation in Australia and New Zealand which, he said (via the Guardian), was the kind of lawmaking needed to protect creatives around the world from the risk of losing out.

“By setting a gold standard in AI policy – one that protects creators’ rights while fostering responsible and innovative technological development – Australia and New Zealand can ensure that AI serves as a tool to enhance human creativity rather than replace it,” Ulvaeus said.

“The world is watching, and the decisions made will resonate far beyond these shores.”

Dean Ormston of Apra Amcos, the Australian music rights management organization, said that similar legislation was required as a matter of urgency. “It’s creators who stand to lose the most,” he argued.

“Our industry thrives on human creativity … [G]overnments need to take the lead and act decisively to protect the livelihoods of creators and the future of our creative industries.”