Indian Music Labels T-Series, Saregama Seek to Join Copyright Lawsuit Against OpenAI

A group of India’s leading Bollywood music labels, including T-Series, Saregama, and Sony, has sought to join a copyright lawsuit against OpenAI in New Delhi over concerns regarding the unauthorised use of sound recordings for AI training, according to a recent report by Reuters. 

The Indian Music Industry (IMI) group, along with T-Series and Saregama, approached a New Delhi court on Thursday, arguing that OpenAI’s alleged use of their copyrighted sound recordings breaches intellectual property rights. The labels assert that the matter is significant for the music industry in India and globally.

OpenAI, backed by Microsoft, has faced increasing legal scrutiny worldwide. The company maintains that it adheres to fair-use principles in utilising publicly available data for AI model training. Neither OpenAI nor the music labels responded to requests for comment.

The music labels aim to be part of a lawsuit filed last year by Indian news agency ANI, which accused OpenAI’s ChatGPT of using its content without authorisation for AI training. Since then, book publishers and media organisations, some linked to billionaires Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, have joined the legal action against OpenAI in the New Delhi court.

Bollywood and Hindi pop music represent a significant industry in India. T-Series, one of the largest music labels in the country, releases approximately 2,000 sound recordings or songs annually. Saregama, which has been in operation for over a century, has a catalogue featuring renowned Indian singers such as Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar. According to its website, the IMI group also represents international labels like Sony Music and Warner Music.

The report added that Indian music companies are concerned AI systems, including those developed by OpenAI, can extract lyrics, compositions, and sound recordings from the internet without proper authorisation.

The legal move follows similar concerns raised globally. In November, Germany’s GEMA, representing composers, lyricists, and publishers, sued OpenAI over ChatGPT’s alleged unlicensed reproduction of song lyrics, arguing that the system had been trained using copyrighted content.

OpenAI has opposed the ANI lawsuit, contending that Indian courts lack jurisdiction as the company is based in the United States with servers located abroad. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for February 21. The outcome is expected to influence the future use of copyrighted material in AI model training in India.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently visited India, meeting with the country’s information technology minister to discuss India’s plans for low-cost AI development.