Perplexity Stands Firm Against BBC’s Legal Claims Over AI-Driven News Content Reuse

The BBC has escalated its ongoing conflicts with technology firms by threatening legal action against the AI search engine Perplexity, raising serious questions about the dynamic between content publishers and AI developers when it comes to the use of copyrighted news material.

In a letter to Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas, the BBC asserts that its “default AI model” has been trained using its copyrighted content. The organization demands that Perplexity immediately halt any scraping of its material, erase all copies used for AI development, and provide financial compensation for the alleged infringements.

This is a groundbreaking move for the BBC, as it marks the first time the broadcaster has sought legal recourse against an AI company for content scraping. It highlights a growing alarm that its freely available public sector content is being exploited without proper authorization. 

The BBC claims that Perplexity has reproduced parts of its content verbatim, linking directly to BBC articles in search results, including newly published work. Executives at the BBC argue that such actions not only undermine its reputation for impartial journalism but also erode public trust, citing internal research that reveals 17% of Perplexity’s responses using BBC sources contain substantial inaccuracies or lack crucial context.

Perplexity, backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and reportedly finalizing a funding round at a staggering $14 billion valuation, has responded to the BBC’s claims with strong opposition. The company characterizes the allegations as “manipulative and opportunistic,” arguing that the BBC fundamentally misunderstands technology, the internet, and intellectual property law. 

Perplexity emphasizes that it does not create or train foundational models but provides an interface for users to access models from industry giants like OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic, utilizing its own refined system based on Meta’s Llama. 

While Perplexity has faced legal challenges from entities such as News Corp subsidiaries and received cease-and-desist letters from other major publishers, it has also forged successful revenue-sharing agreements with reputable outlets like Time, Fortune, and Der Spiegel.

The BBC’s letter articulates the serious implications of Perplexity’s practices: “It is therefore highly damaging to the BBC, injuring its reputation with audiences, including U.K. license fee-payers who fund the BBC, and undermining their trust in the BBC.”

Recent coverage by PYMNTS emphasizes the escalating tensions between generative AI firms and the publishing industry over content scraping, with Perplexity frequently in the spotlight. Reports have highlighted similar legal threats from prominent entities such as the New York Times and Dow Jones, alongside Perplexity’s proactive launch of a publisher revenue-sharing program in response to growing industry concerns. 

The evolving landscape of AI and content use necessitates urgent dialogue and fair practices that uphold the rights and integrity of publishers while embracing technological advancements.