Legal Action Against Perplexity AI by Yomiuri Shimbun
TOKYO: Three subsidiary companies of the Yomiuri Shimbun have instituted legal proceedings against a US-based startup, Perplexity AI, for purportedly utilizing a substantial array of Yomiuri Shimbun articles and images in its generative AI-powered search engine without authorization.
The entities involved—the Yomiuri Shimbun, The Yomiuri Shimbun, Osaka, and The Yomiuri Shimbun, Seibu—have lodged their lawsuit in the Tokyo District Court on August 7, demanding that Perplexity AI cease its use of the newspaper’s content while pursuing damages amounting to approximately ¥2.17 billion (US$1.47 million). Notably, these companies operate under The Yomiuri Shimbun Holdings.
This marks a pioneering instance of a significant Japanese media organization pursuing legal action of this nature, paralleling similar cases where AI enterprises in Europe and the United States have faced lawsuits for the unauthorized employment of copyrighted materials.
Founded in 2022, Perplexity positions itself as an “answer engine” rather than a conventional search engine, aggregating and summarizing online information to provide direct answers to user inquiries. This innovative approach is designed to offer users immediate information without the need to browse through multiple websites.
In its complaint, The Yomiuri Shimbun accuses Perplexity of replicating content from Yomiuri Shimbun Online (YOL) and delivering responses to users that closely parallel these articles. The newspaper argues that this action infringes upon its rights of reproduction and public transmission as delineated by copyright legislation.
It is alleged that Perplexity accessed a staggering 119,467 Yomiuri articles illegally between February and June 2025, utilizing the material to generate responses for its audience. The Yomiuri Shimbun has calculated its claim for damages at ¥16,500 per article, grounded in typical licensing rates.
The total compensation sought may escalate based on subsequent investigative findings.
Moreover, traditional search engines typically direct users to the YOL service, thereby generating advertising revenue for The Yomiuri Shimbun, whereas Perplexity’s model reportedly incurs a decline in traffic to the YOL.
The Yomiuri Shimbun contends that this decline adversely impacts its advertising revenue, further constituting a violation of its commercial interests.
With a dedicated team of approximately 2,500 reporters engaged in news coverage, the newspaper asserts that Perplexity is unduly benefiting from the extensive efforts and resources allocated to journalistic endeavors.
Additionally, the Yomiuri Shimbun is pursuing recompense for lost advertising income.
In response to The Yomiuri Shimbun’s request for commentary via email, Perplexity expressed its regrets for the confusion caused in Japan, stating, “We are currently striving to comprehend the nature of the claims. We take this very seriously, as Perplexity is committed to ensuring that publishers and journalists gain from the new business frameworks emerging within the AI domain.”
In a separate legal matter, Dow Jones, a branch of News Corp, initiated legal action alongside another entity in October 2024, alleging copyright infringement by Perplexity. This case is currently pending in the federal district court in New York, with Perplexity contesting the claims and asserting that its search functionalities are derived from publicly available information, which lacks copyright protection.
The Corporate Communications Department of The Yomiuri Shimbun Holdings issued a statement emphasizing the need to safeguard the integrity of news reporting, asserting that permitting any organization to exploit their findings would jeopardize accurate reporting backed by extensive research and could potentially undermine democratic principles.
The statement concluded with a hope that the lawsuit would prompt a reevaluation of regulations governing the rapid proliferation of generative AI technologies.
Source link: Thestar.com.my.
