News in brief: Google Faces New Ad Tech Lawsuit in Australia; UK Gov Proposes Exception to Copyright Law for AI Training; EU Opens Proceedings Against TikTok on Election Risks   

Google Faces New Ad Tech Lawsuit in Australia 

Google is facing a new antitrust lawsuit in Australia over its monopolistic ad tech practices. The class action, organised by law firm Woodsford and led by Piper Alderman, intends to collect compensation for Australian website and app publishers who have been impacted by Google’s misuse of power in ad tech. This lawsuit adds to the many Google currently faces over its monopolistic practices, as the tech giant’s potential breakup lingers on the horizon. 

UK Gov Proposes Exception to Copyright Law for AI Training

Yesterday in the UK, the government opened a consultation seeking views on how they can establish laws which give the creative industries and AI developers clarity over copyright laws. The consultation has proposed “introducing an exception to copyright law for AI training for commercial purposes while allowing rights holders to reserve their rights, so they can control the use of their content.” According to the government’s press release, this would give creatives more certainty and control over how their content is being used, as well as being able to support them to strike licensing deals. The release states that before these measures could come into effect, further work would need to be carried out with both sectors. The consultation also proposes introducing more rules for AI model developers to be more transparent about the datasets used in their training. The consultation will be open for ten weeks, closing on 25th February 2025.

EU Opens Proceedings Against TikTok on Election Risks   

Meanwhile, more trouble brews for TikTok. The European Commission has opened formal proceedings against the video platform for a suspected breach of the region’s Digital Services Act. The proceedings have been opened “in relation to TikTok's obligation to properly assess and mitigate systemic risks linked to election integrity, notably in the context of the recent Romanian presidential elections on 24 November”, states the Commission. Two main areas under scrutiny include TikTok’s recommender systems as well as its policies on political advertisements and paid-for political content. The Commission will now continue to gather evidence; no legal deadline has been set.