Photo Credit: Jeremy Bishop
Indonesia prepares major changes to its laws that could make the country the first in Southeast Asia to incorporate AI into its copyright framework.
Indonesia is proposing a landmark copyright bill that could make the country the first in Southeast Asia to explicitly regulate AI in its copyright framework.
The proposed legislation would grant copyright protection to AI-assisted works requiring human contribution, ban AI imitation of a creator’s distinct style, and mandate disclosure of AI use in content. Incredibly, it would also require tech platforms to compensate publishers for content used in AI training and aggregation, with strict penalties for non-compliance.
While it isn’t clear when the bill could be passed into law, Indonesian law ministry official Hermansyah Siregar, who oversees the country’s intellectual property framework, confirmed the authenticity of the draft bill to Reuters. It would also mark the first recognition of AI in Indonesia’s copyright law.
“The development of generative AI has disrupted the copyright framework,” said Siregar. “If unregulated, it could kill human creation.”
AI-assisted works would qualify for copyright protection only if they met certain human involvement criteria. Fully AI-generated works would be excluded. At this stage, it’s unclear how much human involvement would be needed to qualify for copyright protection.
However, Indonesia’s bill might trigger concern among tech companies as it appears to “conflate commercial use of AI with its use for research,” according to Ari Juliano Gema, an IP and entertainment attorney. Tech giants could face sanctions for non-compliance, including having their local business permits revoked.
Google issued a statement last month criticizing Indonesia’s proposed copyright overhaul, claiming that “rigid, over-broad mandates” would “harm local creators, slow innovation, and leave Indonesia as an international outlier, ultimately discouraging the investment needed to drive its digital future.”
Last week, Indonesia was one of 29 countries that signed an agreement in Shanghai to establish an intergovernmental body that China says will promote cooperation and global governance of artificial intelligence.
On Friday, China’s President Xi Jinping outlined his vision for a global AI order in which China would share its open-source AI tech and expertise with developing countries worldwide. He also called for AI systems to remain under human control and urged countries to establish both early warning and emergency response systems to manage risks posed by AI.