Quick hit
On 26 October 2025, the Federal Government stated that it will not introduce a text and data mining (TDM) exception for training Generative AI models.
The Government’s rejection of a TDM exception followed the Productivity Commission’s interim report in August 2025, which sought feedback on a proposed fair dealing TDM exception.
For background on the Productivity Commission’s interim report and key copyright issues involved in AI training, see our previous article.
The Government’s position
The Attorney General said, “there are no plans to weaken copyright protections when it comes to AI”.
The Government stated that it “stands behind Australia’s creative industries”, and that work is underway to ensure that Australia is prepared for copyright challenges emerging form AI, so that creators are protected and supported, while unlocking new uses of copyright material.
Next steps
The Government is considering copyright reform issues through the Copyright and AI Reference Group, which brings together key stakeholders from both the creative and technology sectors.
Following the Government’s announcement, the Copyright and AI Reference Group was convened to discuss three priority areas:
- Encourage fair, legal avenues for using copyright material in AI: Examining whether a new paid collective licensing framework under the Copyright Act should be established for AI, or whether to maintain the status quo through a voluntary licensing framework;
- Improve certainty: Explore opportunities to clarify or update how copyright law applies to material generated through the use of AI; and
- Avenues for less costly enforcement: Make it easier to enforce existing rights through a potential new small claims forum to efficiently address lower-value copyright infringement matters.
For assistance with copyright infringement and copyright reform issues, please contact Adam Simpson, Clare Young, Ian McDonald or Anna Spies.
By Esther Ting