The New York Times has entered into a multi-year licensing agreement with Amazon, allowing the use of the media’s editorial content for artificial intelligence platforms. This agreement covers not only news articles but also materials from NYT Cooking and the sports resource The Athletic. This collaboration marks The Times’ first licensing agreement focused on generative artificial intelligence.
This is reported by Finway
Significance of the Agreement for Both Companies
The CEO of The New York Times, Meredith Kopit Levien, stated:
“This agreement aligns with our long-standing principle: quality journalism has a price. We are intentionally protecting the value of our work — both through commercial agreements and through the protection of intellectual property.”
In 2023, the publication sued OpenAI and Microsoft for the unauthorized use of millions of articles to train chatbots, but has now chosen a different path — licensing.
Use of Content in Amazon Products
According to representatives from The Times, their media content may be implemented in products such as Alexa and used to train Amazon’s own AI models. In some cases, the use of articles will be accompanied by a link to The Times’ website.
The financial details of the agreement have not been disclosed, and Amazon declined to comment further than what was stated in the press release. It is worth noting that other media outlets, such as Axel Springer, Condé Nast, News Corp, and the Washington Post, have already entered into similar agreements. This is part of a broader trend in seeking a balance between copyright and technological advancement.
Additionally, Amazon is actively investing in artificial intelligence, including in the startup Anthropic, and is also creating its own artificial general intelligence lab, led by former employees of Adept and Covariant. The agreement with The Times could become an important resource for the development of these ambitious projects.
As a reminder, OpenAI recently announced a merger with the startup io, founded by a former chief designer at Apple.