Canadian Media Companies Sue OpenAI

Canada’s major news organizations have launched a significant lawsuit against the tech firm OpenAI, which may be worth billions. The plaintiffs claim that OpenAI is “strip-mining journalism” by using their articles without authorization to train its popular ChatGPT software. This legal action was filed on Friday in Ontario’s superior court of justice and seeks punitive damages, a share of profits from the use of proprietary content, and an injunction to prevent further use of news articles by OpenAI.

Paul Deegan, president of News Media Canada, stated, “These artificial intelligence companies cannibalize proprietary content and are free-riding on the backs of news publishers who invest real money to employ real journalists who produce real stories for real people.” Deegan’s remarks highlight the broader concern within the industry regarding the financial impact that AI technologies like ChatGPT can have on journalism.

The major litigants include well-known entities such as the Globe and Mail, the Canadian Press, CBC, Toronto Star, Metroland Media, and Postmedia. They are requesting up to C$20,000 in damages for each article reportedly used by OpenAI, which amplifies the potential financial stakes in this case. Should the courts side with the plaintiffs, the repercussions could be profound, leading to financial validations in the realms of billions of dollars.

The formal statement of claim articulates that, “The defendants have engaged in ongoing, deliberate and unauthorized misappropriation of the plaintiffs’ valuable news media works.” The suit claims that OpenAI has systematically scraped, or accessed and copied, content from the plaintiffs’ websites to develop its GPT models without appropriate consent.

It’s important to note that none of these claims have been adjudicated in court yet. Nevertheless, this suit marks yet another major clash between Canadian media and U.S. tech giants, paralleling ongoing disputes involving companies such as Facebook’s parent Meta. Various U.S. news outlets, including the New York Times, have similarly taken legal action against OpenAI over content usage concerns.

OpenAI, valued at over $150 billion, has initiated licensing agreements with select media organizations, including the Associated Press, NewsCorp, and Condé Nast. However, the company did not respond immediately to requests for comment regarding this lawsuit.