8. Restoring Balance: The Struggle Against Copyright Maximalism in the AI Era

The debate over copyright law has intensified with the rise of Artificial Intelligence, revealing a growing friction between \'copyright maximalism\' and the right to access knowledge. As discussed at the India-AI Impact Summit 2026, there is an urgent need to reform rigid intellectual property frameworks that currently obstruct technological progress and the rights of vulnerable groups, such as the visually impaired. • The Perils of Copyright Maximalism: Originally designed as a limited 14-year monopoly to encourage creativity, copyright has expanded into a nearly perpetual regime (author’s life plus 60–70 years). This \'maximalism\' treats all digital fragments as protected assets, hindering the public domain. • Marrakesh Treaty as a Precedent: A milestone in \'Right to Read\' advocacy, this treaty allows for national exceptions and cross-border exchange of books in accessible formats (like DAISY) for the visually impaired, overcoming the \'book famine\' caused by rigid copyright barriers. • Legal Vacuum for AI Training: AI models require massive training data (Text and Data Mining), but Indian law lacks an explicit exception for this. While Section 52 of the Copyright Act, 1957 offers some \'fair dealing\' protections, the lack of a broad \'Data Mining\' clause creates a \'pall of legal uncertainty.\' • Global Best Practices: Jurisdictions like the EU, Japan, and Singapore have adopted specific exceptions for machine-based use. Japan’s law uniquely permits data analysis that does not involve \'enjoying the ideas or emotions expressed,\' treating copyrighted works purely as statistical data.• Impact on Innovation: By treating mechanistic copying (crawling) as infringement, traditional copyright laws effectively make indigenous AI development illegal in many regions, forcing developers to rely on foreign datasets and models. • Need for Sovereign Datasets: The summit emphasized that governments should curate locally relevant datasets and establish \'Safe Harbour\' provisions to protect open-source AI models from predatory copyright claims. Definitions & Key Terms • Copyright Maximalism: A philosophy advocating for the continuous expansion of copyright terms and the narrowing of exceptions, often prioritizing corporate control over public access. • Marrakesh Treaty (2013): An international treaty administered by WIPO that mandates exceptions to copyright law to facilitate the creation of accessible versions of books for people with print disabilities. India was the first country to ratify it. • Text and Data Mining (TDM): The process of using automated techniques to analyze large volumes of digital content to identify patterns, trends, and correlations—essential for training Large Language Models (LLMs). • DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System): A technical standard for digital formats (like audiobooks or e-text) designed specifically to be accessible for people with print disabilities. Constitutional & Legal Provisions • Copyright Act, 1957: The primary legislation in India. While Section 52(1)(zb) provides exceptions for the disabled, it does not explicitly cover \'machine learning\' or \'large-scale data scraping\' for commercial AI. • Article 19(1)(a): The Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression includes the Right to Receive Information. Critics argue that overly restrictive copyright laws infringe upon this fundamental right by limiting access to knowledge. • Article 21: The Right to Dignity and Education. Denying visually impaired persons access to books in friendly formats has been challenged as a violation of their right to lead a dignified life with equal educational opportunities. • Rule of Fair Dealing: A legal doctrine that permits limited use of copyrighted material without permission for purposes like research, private study, criticism, or news reporting. Conclusion Copyright law must return to its roots—fostering creativity rather than protecting obsolete business models. As India positions itself as a global AI leader, it must lead the push for flexible copyright exceptions. Intellectual property should serve as a bridge to innovation, not a barrier to the \'common heritage of mankind.\' Balancing the economic rights of creators with the public’s \'Right to Research\' is critical for the 21st-century knowledge economy. UPSC Relevance • General Studies II: Issues relating to the development and management of Social Sector/Services; Government policies and interventions for development. • General Studies III: Intellectual Property Rights (IPR); Science and Technology—developments and their applications; IT and Computers. • Essay/Ethics: The tension between private property (Copyright) and public good (Access to Knowledge); Social justice for the differently-abled.