Arts Council England Publishes Freelancers’ Handbook
October 16, 2026
Anti Copying in Design (ACID) is one of 63 international media and creative organisations to sign a letter to senior Australian politicians, asking them to reject proposed changes to the country’s copyright laws. The changes would allow artificial intelligence companies to use copyrighted material to train their models.
The letter, led by the News/Media Alliance, was delivered on 20 October. Together, the signatories represent thousands of copyright owners, creative sector organisations and publishers around the world. They add to a growing consensus, both within Australia and internationally, against the proposals, including comments from the Vatican.
The letter supports concerns raised by Australia’s creative community that the changes would turn the country’s copyright system on its head. Rights holders would effectively lose their rights unless they opt out. That goes against decades of international precedent, devalues creators’ work and investment, and weakens their ability to negotiate fair payment when their work is accessed and used.
The impact would reach well beyond Australia. For the last six years, Australia has led the way in protecting publishers against big tech’s market-abusive practices. It has shown that tech platforms can be held to account, and lawmakers in many other countries have looked to it as an example. The proposed changes would not only reduce publishers’ control over their content in Australia, but would also set a damaging precedent for other countries to follow.
Dids Macdonald OBE, Chair and Co-founder of Anti Copying in Design, said:
“If Australia adopted an erosion of copyright law it would set a dangerous precedent for other countries to follow suit. Preserving the rule of law is paramount. One cannot erode centuries-old copyright law at the expense of the world’s creative industries, media and content creators whose livelihoods depend on attribution, transparency and recompense for fair use of their work. AI growth must respect IP rights.”
“Due to the borderless digital ecosystem, policies undermining copyright protections will reverberate worldwide. In addition to inevitable spillover effects and the detrimental precedence set by one of the world’s leading creative economies, the proposals risk establishing Australia as a location to launder infringement worldwide.”
“Australia has long been a strong supporter of the creative industries and the copyright economy. Capitulating to dominant AI developers by adopting a statutory pool solution would erode this reputation and turn the principles of copyright law upside down. Australia should not abandon its leadership position by aiming instead to adopt permanently weaker protections in exchange for speculative AI investments.”
“Australia should not be on the side of multinational, dominant tech companies and drive a race to the bottom at the expense of creative industries that support millions of workers and a thriving cultural ecosystem.”
“We are concerned the rumored solutions on the table would be in clear violation of various international treaty obligations, including the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, the WTO TRIPS Agreement, the WIPO Copyright Treaty, and the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement.”
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