A U.S. court has ruled in favor of Thomson Reuters in a major copyright case involving artificial intelligence (AI). The court rejected the “fair use” defense, stating that copying content without permission is unlawful. The lawsuit, filed in 2020, targeted AI startup Ross Intelligence for using materials from Thomson Reuters’ paid legal platform, Westlaw, to develop a competing product.
Copyright Violation and Court Ruling
According to PCMag, Ross Intelligence copied Westlaw’s proprietary case law summaries, which were compiled by its editors. Judge Stephanos Bibas determined that these summaries are protected by copyright, and their unauthorized use constitutes a legal violation. Ross Intelligence argued that its actions amounted to “innocent infringement,” but the court dismissed this claim.
The ruling considered several fair use factors, including the commercial nature of the usage, the nature of the protected material, and market impact. While two factors weighed in favor of Ross Intelligence, the decisive factor was the market harm caused by its actions. The court found that the startup directly copied content to develop a competing product, rather than creating generative AI outputs.
Implications for AI and Copyright Law
This case could set a significant legal precedent amid growing disputes between AI companies and copyright holders. The New York Times is currently suing OpenAI and Microsoft for allegedly misusing journalistic content, while News Corp and major Canadian media outlets have filed lawsuits against AI developers, including Perplexity and OpenAI.
At the same time, some media companies are opting for licensing agreements instead of litigation, notes NIX Solutions. Vox Media, The Atlantic, and Axios have struck deals with AI firms like OpenAI and Meta, allowing them to regulate how their content is utilized in AI models. Yet, we’ll keep you updated as more integrations become available.