The Latest on Writing and Publishing in Canada
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ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Penguin Random House Includes AI Prohibition on Copyright Page
Books published by Penguin Random House will soon sport a notice on the copyright page explicitly denying permission for use of the work in the training of artificial intelligence.
The notice will reportedly say “No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner for the purpose of training artificial intelligence technologies or systems,” and will be a feature of all books published, both new titles and backlist reprints.
The move by PRH is widely seen in the industry as an important step towards establishing functional regulation around AI, and possibly even a valuable rights licensing marketplace in a world almost certain to include ongoing AI training. Importantly, it will not preclude the publisher and/or author from striking a deal with a technology company to license use for AI training, in the same way the standard “All Rights Reserved” copyright notice does not lock potential users from respectful and permitted uses under license.
The Writers’ Union of Canada is deeply engaged in advocacy toward AI regulation, both through government consultation and support of legal action against unpermitted training in the United States.
Nunavut and Northwest Territories Increase their Publishing Sectors
The Iqaluit and Yellowknife publishing scenes have both seen recent exciting advances. Iguttaq Distribution is a new Inuit-owned book distribution company started by Iqaluit’s Inhabit Media. By the beginning of 2025, Inhabit intends to have moved all its own distribution to Iguttaq from Orca Book Publishers, who currently handle their lists.
Meanwhile, a new publisher has launched in Yellowknife with a hybrid mandate that includes printing services, distribution, coaching and mentorship, and translation services. Northern Quill Publishing grew from the 40-year experience of Book Cellar and NorthWords Writers Festival founder, Judith Drinnan, and is an entirely female-owned and -operated firm.
American Booksellers Fear Rise of Bans Under New Administration
In a post-U.S.-election note to her 2500+ members, American Booksellers Association (ABA) CEO Allison Hill outlined potential challenges to the sector growing out of a second Donald Trump presidency. Along with uncertainty around ongoing competition challenges to Amazon.com and major credit card companies, Hill noted “the hate and disinformation we saw fuel this election have created fertile ground for new unconstitutional legislation and book bans.”
Given the rise of such bans and laws in states controlled by the new President’s party, this prediction seems likely to be borne out. A recent report from PEN America shows that book bans and other censorship attempts rose steeply as the U.S. culture war heated up leading to the recent election. In 2023/24, PEN counts more that 10,000 books bans, an increase from just over 2,500 two years earlier.
Word Vancouver Festival Calls for Donations
Following this year’s late September festival, Word Vancouver sent out an emergency appeal to participants declaring a budget shortfall of $25,000 and requesting donations. The festival suffered a $22,000 reduction in public funding and a $19,000 decline in sponsorships.
“This struggle is certainly not unique to us,” the festival notes, “as arts programs across the province are all vying for a decreasing pool of accessible funds in an economically challenging time."
While Word Vancouver aims to raise their shortfall by the end of November, there is no indication what will happen to the festival if this immediate goal is not reached. Word Vancouver grew from the defunct national Word on the Street network of festivals, and has operated free to the public since 1995.
German Music Organization Defines Fair & Responsible AI
As cultural organizations the world over grapple with the rapid rise of artificial intelligence tools, and lack of regulation for the intersection of AI and cultural work, a music licensing collective in Germany has laid down ten principles for what it calls “a responsible use of generative AI.”
GEMA, headquartered in Munich and Berlin, registers and licenses music, linking users and creators in a complex web of permissions and royalties. Like all creator-focussed organizations, it has been confronted with a “Wild West” of AI inputs and outputs that threatens to upend markets and destroy professional arts work by human authors.
Their principles, designed to center human creativity and permissions-based access, are as follows:
- Digital humanism
- Protection of intellectual property
- Fair participation in value creation
- Transparency
- Negotiations at eye level
- Respecting moral rights
- Respecting cultural diversity
- No bypassing of EU rules
- Sustainability
- Responsibility
Vancouver Public Library Asks for Public’s Help to Buy eBooks
Christina de Castell, Chief Librarian and CEO of the Vancouver Public Library (VPL) has long been outspoken on the issue of ebook pricing for libraries. Now, the VPL has turned to individual public donors, asking for cash gifts aimed at building the VPL’s digital collection.
The Writers’ Union of Canada’s position on institutional ebook pricing models has sought always to protect the value of the work for authors and their publishers, so that library use remains a concurrent public good to book sales, without damaging the primary market.
Some library executives, like de Castell, feel institutional pricing is unfair treatment of publicly funded resources like libraries, and that libraries should be allowed to buy ebooks outright, own them as they do physical copies of books, and loan them perpetually.
TWUC welcomes the creation of a donation channel aimed at purchasing more ebook lending licenses for Canadian libraries. The economics of treating ebooks in the marketplace exactly like print books continues to not add up.
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