The Reading / Listening - Copyright Infringement - Level 1

A.I. is changing the music business. Three big record labels are suing two A.I. start-up companies. The labels say the start-ups are infringing their copyrighted music on "an almost unimaginable scale". The labels say the start-ups are creating music that could fill the market with "machine-generated content". Record labels say this music will "cheapen and ultimately drown out the genuine sound recordings".

A.I. companies say their music is protected under a special law called "fair use". This lets people reuse copyrighted material legally. Fair use means people can use material for things like news and comedy. A start-up CEO said his technology generates "completely new output, not…pre-existing content". However, the record labels say the start-ups have created songs that sound exactly like ABBA songs. The labels want the start-ups to pay $150,000 per song.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Copyright Infringement - Level 0 Copyright Infringement - Level 2   or  Copyright Infringement - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckrrr8yelzvo
  • https://www.wired.com/story/ai-music-generators-suno-and-udio-sued-for-copyright-infringement/
  • https://www.billboard.com/pro/major-label-lawsuit-ai-firms-suno-udio-copyright-infringement/


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. A.I. is changing
  2. Three big
  3. start-ups are infringing their
  4. on an almost unimaginable
  5. the start-ups are
  6. fill the
  7. machine-
  8. drown out the genuine sound
  1. creating music
  2. copyrighted music
  3. scale
  4. recordings
  5. generated content
  6. the music business
  7. market
  8. record labels

Paragraph 2

  1. their music is protected
  2. reuse copyrighted
  3. Fair use means people
  4. for things like news
  5. technology generates completely
  6. pre-
  7. songs that sound exactly
  8. pay $150,000
  1. per song
  2. can use material
  3. new output
  4. existing content
  5. under a special law
  6. like ABBA songs
  7. material legally
  8. and comedy

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

A.I. is changing (1) ___________________. Three big record labels (2) ___________________ A.I. start-up companies. The labels say the start-ups are infringing their copyrighted music (3) ___________________ unimaginable scale". The labels say the start-ups are creating music that could (4) ________________ with "machine-generated content". (5) ___________________ this music will "cheapen and ultimately drown out (6) ___________________ recordings".

A.I. companies say their music (7) ___________________ a special law called "fair use". This (8) ___________________ copyrighted material legally. Fair use means people can use material for things like (9) ___________________. A start-up CEO said his technology generates "completely (10) ___________________ …pre-existing content". However, the record labels say the start-ups have (11) ___________________ sound exactly like ABBA songs. The (12) ___________________ start-ups to pay $150,000 per song.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

A.I.ischangingthemusicbusiness.Threebigrecordlabelsaresuingtwo
A.I.start-upcompanies.Thelabelssaythestart-upsareinfringingthei
rcopyrightedmusicon"analmostunimaginablescale".Thelabelssayth
estart-upsarecreatingmusicthatcouldfillthemarketwith"machine-
generatedcontent".Recordlabelssaythismusicwill"cheapenandultim
atelydrownoutthegenuinesoundrecordings".A.I.companiessaytheir
musicisprotectedunderaspeciallawcalled"fairuse".Thisletspeoplere
usecopyrightedmateriallegally.Fairusemeanspeoplecanusematerial
forthingslikenewsandcomedy.Astart-upCEOsaidhistechnologygene
rates"completelynewoutput,not…pre-existingcontent".However,th
erecordlabelssaythestart-upshavecreatedsongsthatsoundexactlyli
keABBAsongs.Thelabelswantthestartupstopay$150,000persong.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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