Copyright Act under review to address generative AI challenges: Centre in Parliament
New Delhi, Dec 17
The government is reviewing the adequacy of the Copyright Act, 1957, to address emerging legal challenges arising from the use of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), Parliament was has been informed.
An eight-member committee has been constituted by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) on April 28 to study and analyse issues related to generative AI and its implications on copyright law, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada told the Lok Sabha in a written reply on Tuesday.
“Yes. An eight-member committee has been constituted by DPIIT on April 28, 2025, to study and analyse the emerging issues related to generative AI and its implications on Copyright law,†Prasada said.
He added that the committee has already finalised Part 1 of its working paper, which deals with the use of copyrighted content in AI training, and the same has been published for stakeholders’ feedback.
“The committee has finalised part 1 of the Working Paper on the issue of the use of copyrighted content in AI training. It has been published for stakeholders’ feedback,†the minister said.
Prasada further informed that issues relating to authorship and copyrightability of AI-generated works are currently under review and will be covered in Part 2 of the working paper.
Highlighting the mandate of the expert panel, the minister said its terms of reference (ToR) include identifying and analysing legal and policy issues arising from the use of Artificial Intelligence in the context of copyright, examining the adequacy of existing provisions of the Copyright Act, 1957, and making recommendations based on the analysis.
“To identify and analyse the legal and policy issues arising from the use of Artificial Intelligence in the context of copyright†and “to examine the adequacy of existing provisions of the Copyright Act, 1957 in addressing these issues†are among the key tasks assigned to the committee, Prasada said.
He also confirmed that the government is engaging with major stakeholders as part of the review process.
“Yes,†the minister said, in response to a query on whether the law department has engaged or plans to engage with major stakeholders, including news organisations, publishers and representatives from the technology sector, to ensure that legal reforms strike a balance between innovation and effective copyright protection.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Finally! The 1957 Act is from a different era. We need clear laws for AI-generated content. Who owns it? The prompt writer, the developer, or the AI? This will define the future of our tech startup ecosystem. Good to see the government being proactive.
They formed the committee in April and have a working paper ready? That's actually decent speed for a government panel. Publishing for stakeholder feedback is the right approach. Hope they don't over-regulate and stifle innovation. India can be a leader in this space.
Respectfully, I hope the review goes beyond just copyright protection for corporations. The law should also consider the public interest and access to knowledge. If every piece of data used for training requires a license, it will create huge barriers for Indian researchers and students.
The issue of AI training on copyrighted content is the biggest one. Foreign AI models are trained on a lot of Indian content—our movies, music, literature. Any new law must ensure fair compensation flows back to the original Indian rights holders. Jai Hind!
Good move. But I'm skeptical. We have excellent laws on paper but weak enforcement. How will they track and prove copyright infringement by an AI model? The committee needs to propose practical, tech-enabled solutions, not just theoretical legal frameworks.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.