Japanese Ministry: Unauthorized Use of Voices in Generative AI Is Likely Illegal
METI cited posting videos of songs that use AI trained on someone's voice without the permission of that person, and the manufacturing and selling of alarm clocks that use AI voices based on voice actors or screen actors without their permission as probable violations. The agency reiterated that whether there is an actual violation or not, still needs to be judged on a case-by-case basis.METI previously expressed that unauthorized use of AI would violate the law if certain conditions were met, but is now giving specific examples. Japan's Unfair Competition Prevention Act prohibits "the act of creating confusion with another person's goods or business by using an Indication of Goods or Business," such as selling similar products under a similar name as another company's hit product. Penalty for violation could be imprisonment for up to five years, a fine of up to 5 million yen (about US$34,000), or both. There are concerns that AI that generates voices based on voice actors and screen actors without their consent falls under these categories of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act.Talent management agency Aoni Production and AI voice platform CoeFont announced on October 7 a new partnership which uses vocal data from 10 voice actors, including Masako Nozawa and Banjō Ginga, to create AI-replicated voices for use in virtual assistants (such as Alexa and Google Assistant), medical devices, robots, and voice-assisted navigation. The AI-replicated voices will be available in multiple languages, beginning with English and Chinese. The project acknowledges the potential threat to performers' rights and livelihoods posed by the use of generative AI, and promises that it will not use the voice training data for performances in animation, dubs, or similar works.Voice actor Yūki Kaji started a campaign through the crowdfunding service Campfire to fund his Soyogi Fractal project in April 2024. The project would offer creators the means to use Kaji's voice to create new and interesting stories and songs, while also helping to prevent the illicit use of Kaji's voice. The crowdfunding campaign began on April 11, 2024 and ran until May 31 that same year on Campfire. The initial goal was 10 million yen (about US$68,974 in current conversion), but the campaign raised over three times as much from 907 backers.A number of Japanese voice actors formed a group called "No More Mudan Seisei AI" (No More Unauthorized Generative AI) on October 15. The group's "Part 0" video that appeals for the group's cause, launched on the same day, and featured voice actor Ryūsei Nakao (Freeza in Dragon Ball Z series, Baikinman in Soreike! Anpanman series and films), and 25 other voice actors including Kōichi Yamadera, Yūki Kaji, Daisuke Namikawa, Jun Fukuyama, and Romi Park.Source: Kyodo (via Livedoor News) via Hachima Kikō
