Resonate Magazine | Australian Music Centre

The Australian Music Centre joins the unified voice of Australia's creative industries in strongly opposing the Productivity Commission's interim report proposing text and data mining exceptions for AI training without creator consent or compensation. As the national organisation representing over 900 art music collaborators-composers, sound artists, and music creators who predominantly own their own copyrights-we are deeply concerned by proposals that would fundamentally weaken the intellectual property protections that form the economic foundation of our members' creative practices.

The proposed changes would disproportionately impact independent composers and experimental music creators who rely directly on copyright as their primary economic asset. Unlike major labels with extensive legal resources and market leverage, our members depend on the exclusive rights that copyright provides to license their works, receive royalties, and maintain control over how their artistic output is used. The Commission's proposal to retrospectively legitimise what it acknowledges is currently "widespread theft" of creative works would eliminate crucial revenue streams while flooding the market with AI-generated content trained on our composers' life work-without any compensation or attribution.

The economic projections are alarming: APRA AMCOS estimates up to $519 million in losses to music creators by 2028, with 82% of surveyed musicians already expressing concern that AI will prevent them from making a living. This represents not just financial devastation, but a threat to the cultural diversity and artistic innovation that defines Australian art music. Our sector has always championed experimental approaches and boundary-pushing creativity-values that risk being homogenised by AI systems trained on existing works without the nuanced understanding that human composers bring to their craft.

We call on the Australian Government to reject these proposals in favour of balanced approaches that could support technological innovation while protecting creators' rights through proper licensing frameworks, compensation mechanisms, and meaningful consultation with the creative community. The rushed timeline for stakeholder feedback and absence of detailed safeguards demonstrate insufficient consideration of the profound implications for Australia's $9 billion music industry. The Australian Music Centre will continue advocating for policies that recognise the value of human creativity and ensure our composers can sustain their artistic practices in an evolving technological landscape.

The Australian Music Centre stands firmly with our industry colleagues in denouncing the Productivity Commission's proposed text and data mining exceptions for AI training. These proposals would legitimise the wholesale theft of our composers' and collaborators' intellectual property-the very foundation of their creative livelihoods.