Journalists from around the world gathered in Copenhagen, Denmark, on May 27 for the annual WAN-IFRA World News Media Congress to discuss strategies for media companies to survive in the age of artificial intelligence.
The emergence and rapid development of AI technology pose new threats to the business models underpinning the news industry. How should media companies respond? Global media organizations are employing a range of strategies, from aggressive to defensive, in response to AI advancements. Some file large-scale lawsuits against OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, while others collaborate with the AI company by providing content for training purposes and allowing the use of their content for summaries.
Financial Times (FT) Group CEO John Ridding emphasized in his keynote speech at this year’s WNMC that “media companies should demand compensation from AI companies for their content.” In April, FT became the first British media company to announce a contract with OpenAI. Both companies said the agreement would enable OpenAI to enhance ChatGPT using FT’s digital content and that they would collaborate to develop new AI products and features for FT readers. The specific terms of the contract were not disclosed.
Ridding explained that the contract with OpenAI was not just about being an “early mover” but also about understanding potential use cases and the impact of AI, thereby broadening FT’s overall scope. “The payment matters, for principle and for revenue of course, but also important is the opportunity to extend our reach and to understand how users will interact with AI,” he said. “As with the digital and mobile revolutions, pulling up the drawbridge or trying to hold back the tide is not going to be a strategy for success.” Ridding said now is a “truly defining moment” for the news media industry, noting that AI presents as many opportunities as it does risks. He highlighted the potential for improved revenue models through better “reader-tailored services.” FT has already launched an AI-based Q&A tool offering “smart briefings for corporate customers” and started translating its online edition into 25 languages using Google Translate.
The FT chief executive emphasized that despite the advent of AI, which is prone to mistakes and lacks fact-checking capabilities, trustworthy and accurate journalism like FT’s will be in a favorable position. Therefore, FT is “doubling down on high-quality reporting and accurate investigations.” He also cited a warning by DMG Media editor emeritus Peter Wright during a recent debate in the U.K. House of Commons. Wright said generative AI is “the dog eating its own tail,” suggesting that if AI continues to develop by using all media content without any compensation, it could destroy news content. This underscores the rationality of AI platform companies paying for content usage.
Ridding said, “The ‘big five’ tech platforms made $80 billion in profit in the first quarter of this year, up 30% from 2023,” suggesting that there is no shortage of money. This figure compares with the annual revenue of global news media, which ranges between $3 billion and $6 billion. He emphasized, “Rregulators and policymakers need to step up now to protect intellectual property” and “should require that publishers are paid when their journalism is used for training and grounding.”
In another session, Tom Rubin, Chief of Intellectual Property and Content at OpenAI, took the stage. Formerly Microsoft’s chief intellectual property strategy advisor, Rubin stressed the importance of ensuring that smaller news organizations can reap equal benefits from platforms like ChatGPT as larger ones. “Most of our partnerships with news organizations focus not on training AI models but on presenting news content and leveraging technology,” Rubin explained. OpenAI has collaborated with the World Association of Newspaper Publishers (WAN-IFRA) to train 128 journalists across Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and South Asia in using AI tools. “It’s crucial that both small independent journalists and large media entities have the opportunity to learn and utilize AI technology,” Rubin emphasized, referencing a $5 million donation to the Project for American Journalism last year to support AI use in local newsrooms.
When questioned about the recent increase in partnerships between OpenAI and press enterprises, Rubin clarified, “We possess deeper knowledge of the technology, so our role is to assist and guide them in leveraging AI to their advantage.” Addressing concerns within the media community about potential revenue shifts to OpenAI’s platform, akin to previous shifts to Google’s search platform, Rubin affirmed, “OpenAI operates without ads, and we have no intention of changing that. We believe our interests align well with those of journalists and their use of our technology.”
However, in a separate session, tensions between OpenAI and journalists surfaced indirectly regarding compensation for using news in AI training. Varun Shetty, OpenAI’s head of media relations, reiterated during discussions on AI’s role in journalism and news publishing that OpenAI collaborates rather than competes with the media. “We are creators of learning machines, not builders of databases,” Shetty affirmed. Nonetheless, journalists in attendance pressed during the Q&A session for OpenAI to compensate for the news content used to develop ChatGPT.
The World News Media Congress, organized annually by WAN-IFRA, convened over 1,000 journalists from 75 countries this year. Key figures such as Kim Hyo-jae, chairman of the Korea Press Foundation, and Lim Chae-chung, president of the Korean Association of Newspapers, were among the attendees.
*This article was supported by the Korea Press Foundation.
