Europe’s ability to lead in AI will be helped by the new TDM exception

EARE welcomes the decision from EU institutions to enable all Europeans – public researchers and commercial entities – to benefit from a broad and mandatory copyright exception for Text and Data Mining (TDM).

The adoption of Articles 3 and 4 in Tuesday’s vote on the Copyright Directive in the European Parliament will bring much needed clarity for all entities that are at the forefront of the research and innovation ecosystem in Europe, including researchers, libraries, startups, SMEs, technology companies, and others.

Article 4 will be particularly instrumental in supporting the development and growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the European Union. It will promote applications of data analytics and big data and therefore unlock many new business opportunities for innovators in Europe.

Most importantly, it will give Europe the tools to compete globally with countries such as the U.S, Japan, and Singapore that have all already adopted TDM-friendly copyright laws. At a time when many European countries are developing national AI strategies and the European Commission is heavily investing to support AI across the region, this is a positive signal sent by Members of the European Parliament.

As Member States will be working to transpose the Directive in their national legislations, EARE stands ready to work with all stakeholders at national level to ensure that Europe is at the forefront of global AI innovation.