The Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has issued new recommendations aimed at resolving copyright challenges linked to artificial intelligence models. The government committee has suggested a blanket licence system for all AI companies that develop commercial models. This includes firms such as Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, and others. Under the proposed system, companies will make a flat royalty payment to rightsholders whenever their copyrighted material is used to train AI models. DPIIT states that this approach would protect creators while reducing legal uncertainty over fair use.
The recommendations were published in a one hundred and twenty five page working paper titled One Nation One Licence One Payment: Balancing AI Innovation and Copyright. This is the first part of a larger study examining how generative AI and copyright law intersect. The core proposal is a mandatory blanket licence that would allow AI developers to train models using any lawfully accessed copyrighted works without individually negotiating with each copyright owner. A centralised mechanism would ensure that all rightsholders receive compensation.
The eight member committee rejected unrestricted access to copyrighted content for AI training. It noted that allowing such access without payment would weaken incentives for authors, artists, journalists, and other creators, and could harm the creative sector in the long run. Instead, the paper recommends a hybrid licensing structure in which royalties are paid only when AI models that use the data are commercialised.
The working paper also proposes a new centralised body called the Copyright Royalties Collective for AI Training. This body would collect payments from AI companies and distribute them to creators, including those who are not currently part of existing collective management organisations. Royalty rates would be determined by a government appointed committee.
The committee has also suggested that royalties should apply retroactively. Companies that have already used Indian copyrighted material to train commercial AI systems would be required to pay royalties under the new framework.
The draft rejects other approaches, such as a zero price licence or an opt out requirement for creators. According to the committee, these models place unfair pressure on smaller creators who may be unable to monitor how their work is used in AI datasets.
DPIIT has opened the working paper for public consultation and has invited feedback from stakeholders over the next thirty days.
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