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Apple reportedly offers publishers multi-year deals worth at least $50M to license news archives for AI training

The New York Times reported in December 2023 that Apple approached Condé Nast, NBC News and IAC about multi-year licences, worth at least $50 million, to use their news archives for training generative AI. No signed deal was confirmed in the coverage cited here, and the figure was reported by one outlet as per publisher.

NEW YORK, December 22, 2023 - Apple has reached out to major news publishers about licensing their archives to train generative AI, offering multi-year deals worth at least $50 million, The New York Times reported. The talks were not confirmed as signed.12

What was reported

The Decoder, summarizing the Times report, said Apple approached Condé Nast, NBC News and IAC, which owns People, The Daily Beast and Better Homes and Gardens. The Times cited four people familiar with the talks.1 Voicebot.ai wrote that the deals were potentially worth over $50 million for each publisher and that the plans were not finalized.2

Publisher concerns

Publishers were reportedly worried about legal liability, about unforeseen capabilities of models trained on their content, and about Apple later competing with them. Others saw a possible new revenue stream, because Apple was asking for permission.12

Background

The Decoder noted that OpenAI had recently struck similar deals with Axel Springer and the Associated Press. It also noted that Apple could also train models without licences, as some other tech companies have.1

What it means for data sellers

Even a floor price from a buyer in talks is a useful marker of what large buyers considered paying for news archives. Sellers should expect to negotiate indemnity for output risk and clarity on how a buyer will use the archive.

This entry is a news summary. SellYourAIData was not involved in the deal.

How the deal came together

  1. Apple reached out to publishers. According to a New York Times report cited by The Decoder, Apple contacted several major publishers in recent weeks about licensing content for AI training.
  2. The offer was multi-year and large. Apple reportedly offered multi-year deals worth at least $50 million. Voicebot.ai described them as potentially worth over $50 million for each publisher.
  3. Publishers were cautious. Some publishers reportedly thought the terms went too far, since they would license archives for the sum and be held legally liable for Apple's use of the content.
  4. No deal was confirmed. The reports described the plans as not finalized, and Apple did not comment publicly in the coverage cited.

Takeaways for companies with data

  • A reported minimum of $50 million is the highest publisher figure in this period, but it was an offer under discussion and not a signed price.
  • Liability for what a model produces from licensed archives was a stated sticking point for sellers.
  • Sources differ on whether the figure applies per deal or per publisher, so treat it as a floor of unclear scope.

Sources

Every numbered reference above points to an entry here. Figures come from these pages as of the date shown at the top of the article. Where a source reports a number it got from unnamed people, the text says so.

  1. Apple woos publishers with $50 million deals for AI training content (The Decoder, December 2023)
  2. Apple looks for news media partners to train generative AI models: report (Voicebot.ai, December 2023)

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About the AI Data Deal Tracker

SellYourAIData tracks publicly reported sales and licenses of data to AI companies, with the price, terms and sources for each. Entries are checked against public reporting and updated as deals change. SellYourAIData was not involved in this deal. To ask what your company's data could sell for, get a free valuation. To report a deal, contact us.