Meta delays new business terms after publisher backlash on AI scraping

Summarised from 2 outlets · 3 reports · Updated 24 Oct, 11:32 · Archive

Meta is postponing new business terms that publishers fear could allow it to scrape news sites for AI training.

Meta has delayed its new business terms to 20 November, three weeks after their original 30 October effective date, following pressure from publishers and advertisers. The delay aims to give Meta time to explain what is changing in the terms, a Meta spokesperson said.

The terms would have allowed Meta to use web scrapers on domains associated with business accounts on its platforms. Originally, the language stated that Meta could use scraped content to 'train' its products. After publishers objected, Meta removed the word 'training'. However, legal experts say the revised terms still permit scraping through other language. James Grimmelmann, a professor at Cornell Law School, told Nieman Lab that the phrase 'associated with your products or services' would still allow scraping. Matt Topic, a media lawyer at Loevy & Loevy, said that the terms' use of the word 'develop' remains broad enough to encompass training.

The News/Media Alliance, representing thousands of news organisations in the United States and Canada, sent Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg a letter demanding the company withdraw the revised terms. The organisation said news publishers would be forced to provide journalism to develop products that might compete with them for readers and advertisers, 'without compensation'. Regulators in the EU and UK also urged Meta to halt the new terms.

How it is being reported

• Meta is delaying its controversial new business terms amid scraping concernsMeta drew flak for an upcoming change to its business terms that would allow it to scrape business accounts' content for AI training.Engadget · 24 Oct, 11:18
• Meta delays new business terms after publisher pushback on AI scrapingMeta is delaying the enforcement of its new business terms after publishers raised concerns that they could allow the company to scrape news sites for AI training, as reported earlier by Fast Company. In a statement to The Verge, Meta spokesperson Daniel Roberts says the terms will go into effect on November 20th "to allow […]The Verge · 23 Oct, 15:47
• Meta’s AI could still scrape news sites, legal experts sayMeta has tweaked its business terms to remove language suggesting that it could freely train its AI models on news sites, like The Verge - but legal experts say these changes aren't enough to address their concerns. "This does nothing to restrict the 'associated with your products or services' [language] that would let Meta scrape […]The Verge · 22 Oct, 21:32

In this story: Meta · News/Media Alliance · Cornell Law School · James Grimmelmann · Matt Topic · Mark Zuckerberg

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