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Commercial Use Rights for AI-Generated Media
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Right of Publicity and AI Digital Replicas
The right of publicity is a person's legal right to control commercial use of their name, image, likeness and, more and more, their voice.
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Tennessee's 2024 ELVIS Act was among the first laws to extend it explicitly to AI voice clones and digital replicas. AI can now copy someone's voice or face from a small number of samples. State laws, union contracts and proposed federal bills such as the NO FAKES Act are what decide who may make and sell a digital version of a real person.
Dypdykk
The right of publicity grew out of privacy law and is set by each state. There is no general federal version, and the rules differ widely. Some states have statutes, some rely on court decisions, and some offer little protection. Voice cases came before AI. In Midler v. Ford (1988) and Waits v. Frito-Lay (1992), US courts held advertisers liable for hiring sound-alike singers to imitate distinctive voices. AI makes that kind of imitation cheap and easy to scale. Tennessee's ELVIS Act (Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security Act) was signed in March 2024 and took effect on July 1, 2024. It added voice, including simulated voice, to the state's protected rights. It also created liability for anyone who publishes an unauthorized replica, and for anyone who distributes software or tools whose primary purpose is producing unauthorized replicas. Other states moved too. In 2024 California passed AB 2602, which limits vague contract terms for digital replicas, and AB 1836, which covers digital replicas of deceased performers. New York and Illinois also updated their laws. At the federal level, the NO FAKES Act was introduced in the Senate in 2024 and reintroduced in 2025 with backing from entertainment unions and some technology companies. It would create a national right over digital replicas, a notice-and-takedown system for online services, exceptions for news, commentary and parody, and protection that continues after death. It had not been enacted as of late 2025. Contracts matter as much as statutes. SAG-AFTRA's 2023 agreement with the studios, reached after a long strike, requires consent and payment for digital replicas. In 2024 Scarlett Johansson publicly objected that an OpenAI voice called Sky sounded like her, and OpenAI paused that voice. A common misconception is that copyright protects your voice. It does not. Copyright covers specific recordings, not the sound of a person's voice.
Strategisk innvirkning
Risiko og sikkerhet
Katastrofale og hverdagslige AI-skader avhenger begge av hvem som forstår risikoen og hvem som kan handle.
Tydeligere avgjørelser
Offentlig og faglig kompetanse former om sterk sikkerhetspolitikk er politisk mulig.
Skjærer gjennom hypen
Tydelige forklaringer reduserer fangst av hype, laboratorie-PR og vagt etikkteater.
The Future of Right of Publicity and AI Digital Replicas
Expect more state laws that follow Tennessee and California, along with continued debate over a federal standard that would reduce the current patchwork. The main unresolved questions are how to protect parody and commentary without leaving obvious loopholes, whether toolmakers should be liable for how people use their tools, and how long rights should last after death. Union contracts in film, television, music and video games will probably keep setting practical norms faster than legislatures do. Technical measures such as voice watermarking and provenance records may help people enforce these rights, but they cannot replace clear legal rules.
Real-World Implementering
A singer finds an AI-generated track imitating her voice being sold online. Under Tennessee's ELVIS Act she can pursue whoever published it without authorization. She may also be able to pursue the maker of a tool whose primary purpose is producing such unauthorized replicas.
A performer on a SAG-AFTRA film or TV production is digitally scanned. Under the union's 2023 contract, the studio needs the performer's informed consent and must pay them before using that digital replica in new scenes.
A California voice actor is offered a contract clause letting the company use a digital replica of their voice in place of work they would otherwise do in person. Under AB 2602, that clause may be unenforceable if it lacks a reasonably specific description of the intended uses and the actor had no lawyer or union representing them.
A studio plans to recreate a deceased actor with AI for a new film. California's AB 1836 and New York's post-mortem publicity law require the estate's consent for many uses of this kind.
Risikoer og rekkverk
Behandling av eksistensiell risiko som sci-fi mens evnesammensetninger.
Forvirrende overflateproduktsikkerhet med justering under høy autonomi.
Etterlater ikke-engelske og ikke-eksperter med kun kilder av lav kvalitet.
Veikart for implementering
Separate risikoer for produktskade, misbruk og tap av kontroll/feiljustering.
Spør hvilke bevis som vil endre ditt syn på tidslinjer og alvorlighetsgrad.
Foretrekk primære kilder og konkrete vurderinger fremfor markedsføringspåstander.
Identifiser én handlingsvei: karriere, politikk, finansiering eller ferdigheter – ikke bare bevissthet.
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Ofte stilte spørsmål
What is Right of Publicity and AI Digital Replicas?
The right of publicity is a person's legal right to control commercial use of their name, image, likeness and, more and more, their voice. Tennessee's 2024 ELVIS Act was among the first laws to extend it explicitly to AI voice clones and digital replicas. AI can now copy someone's voice or face from a small number of samples. State laws, union contracts and proposed federal bills such as the NO FAKES Act are what decide who may make and sell a digital version of a real person.
Which pre-AI cases held advertisers liable for imitating singers' distinctive voices?
In Midler v. Ford (1988) and Waits v. Frito-Lay (1992), advertisers were held liable for hiring sound-alike singers. These cases established voice protection long before AI.
What notable step did the ELVIS Act take beyond earlier publicity laws?
Besides adding voice to protected rights, the ELVIS Act reaches people who distribute software or tools whose primary purpose is producing unauthorized likenesses, not just those who publish the replicas.
When did the ELVIS Act take effect?
The law was signed in March 2024 and took effect on July 1, 2024.
What does California's AB 2602 address?
AB 2602 can make replica clauses unenforceable if they lack a reasonably specific description of uses and the performer had no lawyer or union representing them.
What was the status of the federal NO FAKES Act as of late 2025?
The NO FAKES Act was introduced in 2024 and reintroduced in 2025 but had not been enacted, so publicity rights remained mostly a matter of state law.
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