Elsevier, Cengage, Hachette, Macmillan and McGraw Hill, joined by the bestselling American author Scott Turow, filed proceedings on Tuesday alleging that Meta knowingly used pirated copies of textbooks, peer-reviewed scientific journals and novels, among them N.K. Jemisin’s The Fifth Season and Peter Brown’s The Wild Robot, to train the systems that now underpin the Silicon Valley group’s generative AI products.
The complaint, which seeks unspecified damages and class-action status on behalf of a far wider pool of rights holders, marks the first time that academic and trade publishers have moved against Meta as a unified front. It also signals a deliberate escalation by an industry that, until now, has largely watched from the sidelines as authors, newspapers and visual artists fought their own corner.
Maria Pallante, president of the Association of American Publishers, did not mince her words. “Meta’s mass-scale infringement isn’t public progress, and AI will never be properly realised if tech companies prioritise pirate sites over scholarship and imagination,” she said.
Meta has signalled it will mount a robust defence. “AI is powering transformative innovations, productivity and creativity for individuals and companies, and courts have rightly found that training AI on copyrighted material can qualify as fair use,” a spokesperson said. “We will fight this lawsuit aggressively.”
The case opens yet another front in a war that is rapidly redrawing the commercial map for content owners on both sides of the Atlantic. Dozens of plaintiffs, from The New York Times, which is pursuing OpenAI and Microsoft, to a coalition of authors, news outlets and visual artists, have already filed suit against the leading AI developers. The legal questions hinge on whether ingesting copyrighted material to produce new, “transformative” output qualifies as fair use under American law, and the early rulings have been anything but uniform. Two of the first judges to grapple with the issue reached opposing conclusions last year.
The first major scalp came when Anthropic, the AI company backed by Amazon and Google, agreed in 2025 to pay $1.5 billion (£1.18 billion) to settle a class action brought by a group of authors, a sum that could have ballooned into multiples of that figure had the matter gone to trial.
For UK small and medium-sized enterprises operating in publishing, marketing, education and the creative industries, the implications are far from academic. The absence of a coherent licensing regime has left British rights holders exposed to the same alleged practices, while AI-dependent businesses face mounting uncertainty over which models can be deployed without inheriting legal liability.
Benjamin Woollams, chief executive of TrueRights, argues the sector urgently needs commercial infrastructure capable of matching the speed at which AI models are being built. “Every one of these lawsuits points to the same underlying problem: there’s no standardised way to license creative work and likeness for AI,” he said. “Tech companies aren’t villains for wanting training data, and creators aren’t luddites for wanting to be paid, but the infrastructure to connect them simply hasn’t existed until now. This represents a huge opportunity for those in the industry to build a transparent and trusted licensing framework that allows innovation and creator rights to coexist commercially.”
He points to the influencer marketing economy, worth tens of billions of pounds globally and constructed almost entirely on rights licensing, as evidence that the commercial template already exists. “Brands and talent collaborate every day on an enormous scale. The commercial appetite for licensed content is there, the economic model is proven, and creators are increasingly aware of how their likeness and IP are used. What’s been missing in AI is a transparent, trusted way to license at the speed and scale these models require.”
Without such guardrails, Woollams warns, the drumbeat of litigation will only grow louder. “This sort of friction and litigation will continue to plague the industry, which will have negative knock-on effects on the kind of collaboration that should be powering the next generation of creative work, where AI platforms, advertisers and talent can actually build together.”
For Meta, the stakes extend well beyond the immediate price tag. A successful class certification could expose the group to claims from thousands of rights holders, while an adverse ruling would reverberate across an industry that has built its competitive edge on the unrestricted ingestion of vast corpora of human-authored work. For Britain’s SME publishers and creators, the case is a reminder that the rules of engagement with generative AI remain very much under construction, and that the courts, for now, are doing the drafting.
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Publishers take Meta to court in landmark AI copyright showdown
SINGAPORE, June 13 — Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will deliver his 2026 National Day Rally speech on August 23, in what will be a key moment to outline his administration’s policy direction.
The Prime Minister’s Office said that the address will take place at ITE College Central in Ang Mo Kio, The Straits Times reported yesterday.
The annual National Day Rally is widely regarded as the government’s most significant domestic policy speech, where the prime minister lays out priorities, reviews national progress and signals upcoming policy shifts.
It will be Wong’s third time delivering the rally speech since assuming office.
The event comes as Singapore continues to focus on economic restructuring, technological adoption and social resilience amid global uncertainty.
KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 — The dissolution of the Johor state legislative assembly is timely as the state government is currently in its strongest position, backed by positive public support for the current leadership, says Umno Information chief Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.
According to Kosmo! Online, Azalina, said the announcement by Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi falls within the state government’s rights and discretion.
“Talk about Johor dissolving the assembly has been ongoing for some time; it was only a matter of timing. We even said Melaka should come first before Johor, but now Johor is first,” she said.
“Perhaps with what has happened recently, the 80th Umno anniversary at the Johor Istana Besar, and Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) winning the Super League title for the 12th consecutive season, I see strong positive support from the people of Johor towards the state leadership.”
She added that the state election process should be conducted with a strong emphasis on democratic principles and calm conduct.
“If possible, we must emphasise the democratic element. There should be no violence or issues arising. From a legal standpoint, we must understand the norms of elections in our system,” she said.
Azalina, who is also minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform), said candidate selection lies with the political bureau and the state Barisan Nasional leadership, which apply their own evaluation criteria.
However, she stressed that young voters are a key demographic that cannot be ignored, as they now make up a significant portion of the political landscape.
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KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 — National men’s singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao pulled off an upset by defeating world number 11 Kodai Naraoka of Japan in the opening round of the Indonesia Open at Istora Senayan, Jakarta, today.
The world number 27 secured a 21-17, 21-17 victory in 50 minutes to advance to the second round of the prestigious Super 1000 tournament.
The win marked Jun Hao’s fifth victory over Naraoka in their seven career meetings.
Jun Hao will next face either third seed Anders Antonsen of Denmark or France’s Alex Lanier for a place in the quarter-finals.
Malaysia also had reason to cheer in the men’s doubles when world number eight pair Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani advanced to the second round after overcoming Singapore’s Wesley Koh Eng Keat-Junsuke Kubo in straight games.
The independent pair won 21-17, 21-16 and will next take on either England’s Ben Lane-Sean Vendy or Japan’s Takumi Nomura-Yuichi Shimogami in the second round.
However, it was a disappointing day for Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub Azriyn-Tan Wee Kiong, who bowed out in the first round after suffering an 18-21, 10-21 defeat to India’s Hariharan Amsakarunan-M R Arjun.
Also enduring an early exit were mixed doubles pair Jimmy Wong-Cheng Su Yin, who fell 19-21, 18-21 to China’s world number one Feng Yan Zhe-Huang Dong Ping in a 45-minute contest.
The first-round action will continue tomorrow with several Malaysian representatives set to begin their campaigns, including top men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah. — Bernama
MALAYSIA: The Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) has warned food outlets against using halal‑related terms without proper certification, banning phrases like “No pork no lard” or “Muslim Friendly.”
In a video, JAIS stressed that only businesses with valid SPHM halal certification may use such labels. Misleading terminology creates false impressions of compliance, ignoring key factors like alcohol, cross‑contamination, and non‑halal ingredients. Violations fall under the Trade Descriptions Act 2011.
Over on social media platform X, one user criticised JAIS’s directive, saying the rules are becoming increasingly unreasonable. She argued that if customers choose to dine at establishments without halal certification, it should be entirely their decision. According to her, there are simpler ways to manage halal compliance, but this is making it difficult for both business owners and consumers.
Following that, another commenter argued that if a restaurant displays a “no pork, no lard” sign and a customer feels uneasy, they can simply choose another establishment. He emphasised that Muslims in Malaysia have abundant dining options, making it easy to select places that align with their preferences.
In the midst of the debate, a comment pointed out that the directive could create challenges for non‑Muslim customers. He noted that many individuals who are not Muslim also prefer to avoid pork or lard in their meals. Without clear signage such as “no pork, no lard,” these customers may struggle to identify suitable restaurants.
Amid the debate, some expressed support for JAIS’s warning, calling the ban a straightforward initiative. The user argued that it is actually more confusing for customers when a non‑halal restaurant claims not to serve pork or cook with lard, as this creates misleading impressions about compliance. According to the user, JAIS is simply carrying out its responsibilities diligently.
Others warned that the directive could deepen divisions among Malaysians. He argued that food has traditionally been a space where people of different cultures share meals and connect, but such practices are becoming increasingly rare.
By restricting signage and complicating dining choices, he fears Malaysians of diverse backgrounds will be less likely to eat together in the same restaurants.
Malaysians appear divided over JAIS’s directive, with some supporting the ban while others oppose it. Critics argue that the religious department could ease tensions by making halal certification more affordable and accessible.
They suggest that lowering costs would encourage more eateries—especially those already operating as “no pork, no lard” establishments—to pursue official certification.
This article (Malaysia divided over JAIS warning on ‘no pork, no lard’ restaurant signs) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News.
KUCHING, June 13 — A toddler aged around three-years-old was found alone and crying for help by the roadside in Taman Berlian, Kota Samarahan.
See Hua News Daily reported that the girl was discovered at around 2am today by some college students who were having their late-night meal at a coffeeshop in the area.
The child has since been taken to Samarahan police station before being sent to the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) emergency unit for a medical check-up. She is currently under observation.
Samarahan district police acting chief DSP Barry William has confirmed the incident, saying that an investigation has been launched to determine how the girl ended up by the main road.
The authorities have also identified the child’s family members, and inquiries are ongoing.
At about 2.10am, the female college student had just finished her late-night meal at a café in the Taman Berlian residential area.
While she and a friend were riding a motorcycle home, they noticed a small child gesturing to them from the side of the road.
Unsure whether what they had seen was actually a child, they turned back to check and confirmed it was a young girl holding a feeding bottle.
The girl was crying for her mother and was carrying a blue towel and a small beaded basket. — The Borneo Post
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