On 13 October 2026 ARIA and PPCA publicly pushed back on claims by the co-chairs of the Joint Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence, Jo Briskey and Jono Duniam. Speaking on live television after the committee's interim report, the co-chairs had suggested that Australian copyright law is failing and must be overhauled or creators will miss out on AI.
“The evidence is clear that this is not a market failure. It is a failure to acknowledge the market that already exists.”
Annabelle Herd, ARIA and PPCA Chief Executive, to Australasian Leisure Management · ausleisure.com.au ↗
The industry bodies say the opposite is true. In their view copyright gives creators control and is the barrier against unchecked access by large American AI companies. They point to ARIA's own submission, which listed 18 major global deals between AI firms and the music industry, with nine more struck since and others coming. Australian-headquartered companies and local labels are among the parties.
They also argue that global licensing works, and that enforcement happens where copying takes place, so Parliament does not have to solve overseas AI piracy. They say the committee ignored evidence from rightsholders and that what exists is a failure to acknowledge an existing market, not a market failure.
The statement follows the interim report and the co-chairs' television appearance, and comes as labels and publishers sue AI companies in the US.
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