Korea's venture industry is pushing back against the government's draft guidelines on the use of copyrighted works for generative artificial intelligence, warning that restrictions on content available for AI training could stifle technology development across the sector.
The Innovation Venture Association Council, a coalition of 18 venture-related organizations representing the startup ecosystem, demanded a comprehensive review of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's "Guidelines on Fair Use of Copyrighted Works for Generative AI Training" scheduled for release this month. Eleven member organizations including the Korea Venture Business Association and the Korea Artificial Intelligence Association joined in issuing the statement of opposition.
Fair use refers to a legal framework that permits the use of copyrighted materials without the rights holder's consent when certain conditions are met.
The association's opposition stems from concerns that the guidelines would narrow the scope of copyrighted works available for AI development. Critics also argue the draft fails to reflect international trends on fair use. In the United States, court precedents have broadly recognized fair use for AI training to support industry development.
The ministry's draft guidelines stipulate that copyrighted works cannot be used for AI training without the rights holder's consent if such use infringes on creators' interests, lacks public benefit, or involves commercial purposes. Examples include AI systems learning from web novels or webtoons to generate similar stories, or using legitimately purchased music to train AI for composition.
The venture industry responded immediately after the draft was released. The Innovation Venture Association Council argued that "most copyrighted works used for corporate AI development would effectively be excluded from fair use, putting AI companies at a disadvantage." The Korea Startup Forum stated that "placing excessive emphasis solely on protecting rights holders will cause serious disruption across the domestic venture ecosystem."
The industry is particularly concerned that finalizing the guidelines in their current form would cause Korea to miss the critical window for AI competition. "Global companies are competing with AI services, and we cannot afford to waste a single second," said Kim Hyun-chul, chairman of the Korea Artificial Intelligence Association. "We need to quickly establish data training standards within a scope that does not directly disadvantage copyright holders, so that quality copyrighted works can be used for AI training."
