Web Publishers Launch New Licensing Standard for AI Training Data
AI
Licensing
Web Publishing
Artificial Intelligence
RSL Standard
Copyright
Data Scraping
8
Content Control
Media Hype
7/10
Real Impact
8/10
What is the Viqus Verdict?
We evaluate each news story based on its real impact versus its media hype to offer a clear and objective perspective.
AI Analysis:
While the hype around AI’s impact is high, the real-world impact of a standardized licensing system for AI training data is substantial, potentially reshaping the industry’s data acquisition practices and driving significant legal and commercial changes. The current hype surrounding AI’s capabilities doesn’t diminish the strategic importance of securing a foothold in this evolving landscape.
Article Summary
Reddit, Yahoo, Quora, and a growing list of other web publishers are spearheading a new approach to how AI companies access their content for training large language models. The RSL Standard, spearheaded by the newly formed RSL Collective, introduces a licensing system that enables publishers to dictate terms for data access, including pay-per-crawl fees and even per-inference royalties when AI models reference their work. This move responds to concerns about the widespread, often unauthorized, scraping of online content by AI developers, a practice that’s fueled legal disputes and accusations of exploiting intellectual property. The RSL Collective, led by RSS co-creator Eckart Walther and former IAC CEO Doug Leeds, is hoping to create a scalable business model for the web, shifting the power dynamic in the AI training landscape. The standard utilizes the existing ‘robots.txt’ protocol but adds a layer of licensing and compensation terms. While the RSL Collective aims to simplify the negotiation process for publishers, the success of this initiative ultimately hinges on widespread adoption by major AI companies. The collective hopes to enforce licenses legally, similar to existing digital rights organizations like ASCAP. This is a critical step as legal battles continue between publishers and AI developers over the use of copyrighted material.Key Points
- Web publishers are launching the RSL Standard to receive compensation for AI training data usage.
- The RSL Standard allows publishers to set licensing terms, including pay-per-crawl fees and per-inference royalties.
- The RSL Collective, led by RSS co-creator Eckart Walther and former IAC CEO Doug Leeds, aims to create a new, scalable business model for the web.