Intellectual property rights Archives | Page 27 of 42

Juventus gains backing from Tether

Tether, the cryptocurrency firm behind one of the world’s leading stablecoins, has invested in Juventus, Italy’s most popular football club. Holding a 5% stake valued at approximately €50 million, Tether revealed it has acquired shares gradually over recent months.

CEO Paolo Ardoino, a Juventus supporter, highlighted the firm’s desire to explore collaborative opportunities while remaining a minority investor.

Tether has expressed its willingness to cooperate with Juventus’ management and owners, aiming to enhance the club’s brand globally. Potential collaboration may include utilising Tether’s payment platform and vast user base of 400 million, particularly in emerging markets.

Ardoino noted that football clubs must adopt forward-looking strategies to connect with fans using innovative technologies.

Juventus, controlled by the Agnelli family through investment company Exor, has faced financial challenges recently, including losses nearing €200 million in the last fiscal year. Exor has denied any plans to sell its majority stake, which currently stands at 64%.

Ardoino emphasised that Tether’s goal is supportive rather than aggressive, focusing on unlocking the club’s untapped potential.

Tether remains a dominant player in the stablecoin market, with over $140 billion tokens in circulation. Despite regulatory concerns about stablecoins’ risks to financial systems, Tether’s profitability exceeded $13 billion in 2024, providing ample resources for strategic investments like its stake in Juventus.

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DeepSeek’s success drives Baidu’s plan to open-source Ernie 4.5

Baidu has announced plans to open-source its upcoming Ernie 4.5 chatbot series, citing inspiration from the success of AI firm DeepSeek. The move is aimed at encouraging greater adoption of its technology by making it more accessible.

Baidu also plans to provide premium chatbot services free of charge starting in April, with the open-source launch scheduled for June.

DeepSeek’s open-source approach, combined with its innovative R1 model, has gained widespread attention and increased adoption of foundational AI tools. Baidu CEO Robin Li highlighted the significance of this strategy in shaping the company’s decision.

He expressed confidence in the technology behind Ernie 4.5, which Baidu claims will be its most advanced model to date.

Despite advancements in AI, Baidu’s Q4 2024 results revealed a 2% revenue decline to 34.12 billion yuan, slightly ahead of expectations. Growth in the Cloud AI sector, up 26% year-on-year, partly offset a 7% drop in its online marketing business.

Weakness in China’s economy, particularly the property market, has contributed to reduced advertising demand.

Baidu handled 1.65 billion daily interactions on its Ernie platform in December, up from 600 million in August. However, its US-listed shares dropped 7% in early trading after the results.

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New Fiverr AI model offers creative control to freelancers

Freelance marketplace Fiverr is rolling out new AI tools designed to help gig workers streamline their work and maintain competitiveness. The ‘Personal AI Creation Model’ allows freelancers to train AI systems on their own work, offering clients either automated or blended content.

Freelancers retain ownership of the generated content and can set prices for its use, with the service costing $25 per month.

The tools aim to address challenges in the gig economy, where generative AI has increased competition while reducing opportunities. Fiverr highlights that the AI creation model prioritises freelancers’ control, ensuring their data is not misused.

Additionally, a ‘Personal AI Assistant’ is available to help with routine tasks and client communication, priced at $29 per month or included with Fiverr’s premium subscription.

Fiverr is also introducing a programme granting company shares to its top-performing freelancers. While the specifics remain undisclosed, the initiative reflects efforts to support gig workers in an increasingly competitive market.

As generative AI reshapes industries, Fiverr’s initiatives could help freelancers navigate the evolving landscape while enhancing their earning potential and safeguarding their creative work.

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AI copyright case could set legal precedent

A US federal judge has ruled that Ross Intelligence infringed on Thomson Reuters’ copyright by using its legal research content to train an AI platform. The decision marks a significant moment in the ongoing debate over AI and intellectual property, as over 39 similar lawsuits progress through US courts.

Ross had argued that its use of Reuters’ Westlaw headnotes, summaries of legal decisions, was transformative, meaning it repurposed the material for a different function. However, the judge rejected this defence, ruling that Ross merely repackaged the content without adding significant new value. The company’s commercial intent also played a role in the ruling, as its AI system directly competed with Reuters’ legal research services.

The ruling could impact future AI copyright cases, particularly those involving generative AI models trained on publicly available content. While some believe it strengthens the case for content creators, others argue its scope is limited. Legal experts caution that further court decisions will be needed to define how copyright law applies to AI training in the long term.

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Indian music industry joins lawsuit against OpenAI

Several of India’s leading Bollywood music labels, including T-Series, Saregama, and Sony, seek to join a lawsuit against OpenAI in New Delhi. They are concerned that the company’s AI models may have used their sound recordings without permission, potentially violating copyright laws. The legal action follows a previous lawsuit filed by Indian news agency ANI, which accused OpenAI’s ChatGPT of using content without authorisation to train its models. The music labels argue that this issue has significant implications for the global music industry.

The music companies, which represent major Indian and international music acts, claim that OpenAI’s AI systems could extract lyrics, compositions, and sound recordings from the internet without consent. T-Series, known for releasing thousands of songs annually, and Saregama, which holds a vast catalogue of iconic Indian music, are leading the charge. The Indian Music Industry (IMI), which also represents global labels like Sony Music and Warner Music, is pushing for the case to be heard in court, as the outcome could impact the future use of copyrighted content in AI training.

OpenAI, backed by Microsoft, argues that it adheres to fair-use principles by using publicly available data to build its AI models. However, the company is facing increasing legal pressure from multiple sectors worldwide, including recent lawsuits in Germany, where GEMA accused OpenAI of unlicensed use of song lyrics. OpenAI has opposed the Indian lawsuit, claiming that Indian courts do not have jurisdiction over the matter, given the company’s US base.

The next court hearing, which could shape the future of AI and copyright law in India, is scheduled for 21 February. This legal battle is gaining attention, particularly as OpenAI’s chief, Sam Altman, recently visited India to discuss the country’s plans for developing low-cost AI technology.

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AI push in China planned by Apple

Apple is preparing to introduce its AI features to iPhones in China by mid-year. Efforts include significant software adaptations and collaboration with local partners to meet the country’s unique requirements.

Teams based in China and the US are actively working to customise the Apple Intelligence platform for the region. Insiders suggest the launch could happen as early as May, provided technical and regulatory challenges are resolved.

Regulatory compliance remains a critical hurdle for Apple. The project reflects the company’s growing emphasis on localising its technology for key international markets, including China.

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Chinese tech giant Tencent wins US court battle

Tencent, a leading Chinese tech giant, has won a significant copyright infringement case in a US district court. The ruling resulted in nearly $85 million in compensation after a Taiwan-based TV box firm, Unblock Tech, and its distributors were found guilty of violating copyrights on over 1,500 Tencent shows, including ‘Little Days’ and ‘Three Body Problem’.

The judgement was handed down by the US District Court for the Western District of Texas. Tencent units, including Tencent Penguin Film and Tencent Technology, brought the case against the defendants for copying, distributing, and importing the content without permission.

Neither Tencent nor Unblock Tech provided comments regarding the ruling.

Analyst Vivian Toh highlighted the challenges of addressing cross-border infringement, stating that Tencent’s success underscores its commitment to protecting intellectual property.

The win reflects the broader issue of video content piracy, which remains a persistent problem across global markets.

Tencent has also pursued similar cases in China, targeting TikTok and Douyin-owner ByteDance over unauthorised use of its content. The outcomes of those lawsuits have yet to be publicly disclosed.

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OpenAI prioritises simplicity with unified AI model strategy

OpenAI has announced plans to simplify its artificial intelligence product line by combining its o-series and GPT-series models into a unified system. CEO Sam Altman revealed the strategy in a post on X, highlighting the need for more accessible AI tools.

The decision marks a shift away from standalone releases, such as the previously unveiled o3 and o3 mini models.

The company aims to launch GPT-5 as a comprehensive AI system that incorporates the features of earlier models, addressing user concerns about complexity. Altman stressed the importance of creating tools that ‘just work’ while providing no exact timeline for the rollout.

OpenAI also plans to release GPT-4.5, codenamed ‘Orion’, as its final non-chain-of-thought model.

The announcement follows increased scrutiny over AI development costs, with competitors like China’s DeepSeek introducing more affordable alternatives. The move aligns with OpenAI’s efforts to remain competitive while addressing usability issues.

By streamlining its offerings, OpenAI hopes to deliver systems capable of handling diverse tasks and leveraging available tools seamlessly. The new roadmap reflects a broader industry trend towards efficiency and user-centric design.

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EU scraps tech patent, AI liability, and messaging privacy rules

The European Commission has abandoned proposed regulations on technology patents, AI liability, and privacy rules for messaging apps, citing a lack of foreseeable agreement among EU lawmakers and member states. The draft rules faced strong opposition from industry groups and major technology firms. A proposed regulation on standard essential patents, designed to streamline licensing disputes for telecom and smart device technologies, was scrapped after opposition from patent holders like Nokia and Ericsson. Car manufacturers and tech giants such as Apple and Google had pushed for reforms to reduce royalty costs.

A proposal that would have allowed consumers to sue AI developers for harm caused by their technology was also withdrawn. The AI Liability Directive, first introduced in 2022, aimed to hold providers accountable for failures in AI systems. Legal experts say the move does not indicate a shift in the EU’s approach to AI regulation, as several laws already govern the sector. Meanwhile, plans to extend telecom privacy rules to platforms like WhatsApp and Skype have been dropped. The proposal, first introduced in 2017, had been stalled due to disagreements over tracking cookies and child protection measures.

The decision has drawn mixed reactions from industry groups. Nokia welcomed the withdrawal of patent rules, arguing they would have discouraged European investment in research and development. The Fair Standards Alliance, representing firms such as BMW, Tesla, and Google, expressed disappointment, warning that the decision undermines fair patent licensing. The Commission has stated it will reassess the need for revised proposals but has not provided a timeline for future regulatory efforts.

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Thomson Reuters wins court case against Ross Intelligence

Thomson Reuters has won a legal battle against Ross Intelligence, after a judge ruled that the law firm’s use of Thomson Reuters’ legal content to train an AI model violated US copyright laws. The case stems from a 2020 lawsuit where Thomson Reuters accused the now-defunct legal research firm of using its Westlaw platform to build a competing AI system without permission.

Judge Stephanos Bibas confirmed that Ross Intelligence’s use of the content did not qualify as “fair use” under US copyright law, which permits limited use of copyrighted material for purposes such as teaching or research. Thomson Reuters expressed satisfaction with the ruling, stating that copying its content for AI training was not a fair use.

This case is part of a broader trend of legal challenges involving AI and copyright issues, with authors, artists, and music labels filing similar lawsuits against AI developers for using their works without compensation. These cases all involve the claim that tech companies have used vast amounts of human-created content to train AI models, raising concerns about intellectual property rights and the ethics of AI development.

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