Ashwini Vaishnaw
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology and Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Thursday (February 27, 2025) that the news industry was going through “a major transition phase,” and that this “brings challenges related to employment, creativity, copyright issues, and ensuring fair compensation for content creators, producers, and other stakeholders in the media industry”.
Mr. Vaishnaw made the pre-recorded remarks to the Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA)’s annual conclave. He said the government would extend “all necessary support” to the news industry in navigating this transition. The DNPA is an association of print and broadcast media companies with a digital presence. The Hindu is a DNPA member.
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Fair compensation
Mr. Vaishnaw’s remarks come as the Indian news industry presses Big Tech firms to better compensate them for using their content. This demand has gained further momentum after the rise of AI models trained on public news content. This is a key issue in an ongoing lawsuit against OpenAI in the Delhi High Court, where the DNPA is an intervenor.
Addressing the gathering virtually, I&B Secretary Sanjay Jaju emphasised the importance of fair compensation. “News articles and reports produced by all of you are now being used to train AI models, which then prioritise certain narratives without compensating the original creators,” Mr. Jaju said. “This has ramifications, and has issues on ethical concerns. At the same time, it also has issues of repurposing journalistic content for corporate profit trends.”
“At the same time, there is also a need for a transparent revenue sharing mechanism to ensure that our journalism remains financially sustainable,” Mr. Jaju said. “And it’s not just about economics. It’s actually about protecting the integrity of journalism in the digital age.”
On social media, Mr. Jaju pushed for firms to take more responsibility in the content they put out. “Intermediaries need to take accountability for the impact they’re going to have on our society,” he said.
AI regulations
The government is closely studying regulations in other jurisdictions, including the European Union, to determine appropriate measures regarding deepfakes and Artificial Intelligence in general, IT Secretary S. Krishnan said during the conclave.
“Our emphasis is on enabling AI-driven innovation while ensuring accountability through clear liability provisions,” Mr. Krishnan said. “Global AI summits, such as those in the U.K., Seoul, and Paris, highlight a shift toward AI safety and governance. India aligns with these discussions while prioritising innovation.”
Mr. Krishnan told The Hindu on the sidelines of the event that in-person consultations for the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025 were almost concluded, with only two consultation events pending, post which the Ministry will move to finalise the Rules.
Published – February 27, 2025 08:44 pm IST