From Music Business Worldwide · · 2m
ARIA CEO warns AI firms seek free copyright ride
ARIA CEO says OpenAI and Anthropic want Australia to ignore copyright laws for AI training.
In brief
ARIA CEO says OpenAI and Anthropic want Australia to ignore copyright laws for AI training. ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd warns that OpenAI and Anthropic are asking Australian government to sign deals that exempt them from copyright laws, risking global exploitation of rights holders. Originally reported by Music Business…
ARIA CEO warns AI firms
Annabelle Herd, CEO of ARIA and PPCA, accused OpenAI and Anthropic of 'asking Government for a free ride' on copyright.
“OpenAI and Anthropic want the Australian Government to sign up to a deal to train their frontier AI agents here on the proviso that they don’t have to abide by our copyright laws.”
AI companies seek copyright exemptions
OpenAI and Anthropic each called on Australia to ease its position on AI training, as reported by Reuters on September 22.
Anthropic's proposal
Anthropic proposed a narrow form of conditional approval for AI model training, with conditions like investment in support of Australian creators.
OpenAI's request
OpenAI argued for rules that let AI models train on public information while giving rights holders collaboration opportunities.
Data center investments
OpenAI signed a memorandum with NEXTDC in December 2025 for an AI campus in Sydney, while Anthropic secured a data center in Queensland.
Herd's concerns
Herd warned that changing Australian copyright law to accommodate AI companies could make Australia a Trojan horse for Big AI and industrial-scale copyright exploitation.
Herd on licensing
Herd said the law is very certain in Australia, with no need for companies to bypass copyright rules through legal loopholes.
Herd on sovereignty
Herd stressed that Australia should not rewrite laws to suit foreign company commercial interests, as it would devastate the music industry and make Australia a pariah globally.
US lawsuits
Anthropic defends copyright lawsuits in the US brought by music publishers including Universal Music Publishing Group and Concord Music Group.
Market for AI training
The RIAA and NMPA cited existing licensing deals as evidence that a market for training data exists, despite court rejecting fair use claims.
Valuation details
Anthropic's implied valuation reached USD $1.5 trillion, while OpenAI's funding rounds valued it at USD $852 billion.
Herd on global licensing
Herd noted that the music industry already has efficient licensing systems capable of licensing 90 per cent of the world’s sound recordings.
Herd on market failure
Herd stated there is clearly no market failure, just two foreign companies valued at over USD $1 trillion asking government for a free ride.
The bottom line
ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd warns that OpenAI and Anthropic are asking Australian government to sign deals that exempt them from copyright laws, risking global exploitation of rights holders.
