Copyright Agency – ‘Australia has a world-class copyright system’

In the lead-up to the 2025 Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA), Books+Publishing is in conversation with the event’s major sponsors about the status of the industry, what excites them about the future, and what they have to offer publishers, booksellers and readers. Josephine Johnston, CEO of the Copyright Agency, spoke with the publication.

This segment is supported by the event sponsors. 

Tell us about your organisation. What do you most want booksellers and publishers to know about what you do?

Copyright Agency is an Australian not-for-profit organisation that represents more than 40,000 members across the publishing, media, visual arts, education and surveying sectors. We connect users and creators of content, providing licences for the use of copyright material such as text, images, art and survey plans. Our members are primarily publishers, authors and visual artists.

Alongside the management of fee distribution to our members, we monitor and seek to influence policy developments that affect copyright-based licence fees and other income for content creators, often working closely with other organisations representing Australia’s creative industries. Membership is free.

What’s your top piece of actionable advice for folks working in publishing and/or bookselling?

We are an important source of secondary revenue for publishers and their authors, but publishers need to take care that their licensing arrangements are not unintentionally too broad and cut off that revenue opportunity. The AI developments occurring are regarded by many as threatening, but there are also opportunities for licensing for fair and ethical AI-related activity.

Tell us an interesting fact that book industry folks don’t know about your organisation. 

Copyright Agency was incorporated in 1974 but didn’t receive its first payment of copyright licensing fees until 11 years after, receiving a cheque for $16.10 in July 1985. Thankfully, we’ve managed to collect a lot more fees on behalf of our members since then; last year we distributed more than $100m!

Aside from the much-publicised concerns about generative AI, what do you think is the biggest challenge for copyright owners in Australia at the moment?

Most of the publicity about AI has focused on the use of Australians’ content, including pirated books, to train large language models offshore (primarily in the US). We and others in the creative industries have asked the government to introduce a new law that would compensate Australians when the outputs from that training (the language models) are used in products and services available in Australia.

But because all the focus has been on the offshore training, many don’t realise that Australia has a world-class copyright system that enables legal and fair use of content for AI-related activities. The challenge of fending off concerted pushes by multinational companies to water down our copyright system is not new, but newly important for AI.

Thinking of the last few years in publishing and bookselling, what has excited or interested you the most?

The resurgence of young adult literature that tells unique stories, tackles complex but necessary topics, and is something that young people (and those at other ages) actually want to read!

We’ve also been thrilled to support a number of projects supporting First Nations literature, including commissioning teaching resources on First Nations literature that are available on our Reading Australia website.

What do you think is the state of the book industry right now? If you could name one factor that most underpins this impression, what would it be?

Cautious yet resolute. The industry has a long history of dealing with unprecedented challenges, whether it be multinational ecommerce platforms usurping the traditional bookselling model, a global pandemic, or the rise of social media pulling people away from books and into their devices.

This time, unregulated generative AI is making its presence known and has exploited countless creators and their works. Copyright Agency and others have since asked the Australian Government to introduce standalone legislation that would compensate Australians for the use of their works in training AI models offshore.

Yet, I don’t expect the industry to rest on its laurels while this is all happening. Instead, it will continue to adapt and develop new ways to work with generative AI, creating new opportunities for writers, publishers and booksellers.

If you could change one thing about the industry at a systemic level, what would it be?

More diversity in the workplace, in all levels, but particularly in mid-career and leadership roles. This is, of course, something that needs to be addressed in all Australian industries, but it’s particularly pertinent for the publishing industry because stories need to be told – and edited, published, reviewed – by people of all backgrounds.

Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund recently updated its priorities to include a ‘sector development’ commitment, which supports organisations that provide leadership initiatives and opportunities for First Nations and diverse editors, publishers and journalists.

What do you think the next five years hold for the book industry in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand?

Learning to live with, and benefit from, the use of generative AI. We are preparing to launch our Annual Business Licence extension to cover staff of licensed businesses who include third-party material in prompts for AI tools and copy and share outputs from AI tools with colleagues. Members who choose to have their works covered by this area of licence participation will receive financial compensation for the use of their work.

This is just the first step in our generative AI journey to ensure content creators are protected and recompensed through appropriate licensing.

And a bonus (optional) question – what book from Australia or Aotearoa New Zealand have you most recently enjoyed?

Charlotte Wood’s Stone Yard Devotional. We were delighted to see Charlotte’s shortlisting for the Booker Prize in 2024, the first Australian author (and Copyright Agency member!) to be shortlisted since 2014. Stone Yard Devotional is a masterful piece of literature and possibly my favourite book of last year.

The Australian Book Industry Awards are presented for achievements in bringing Australian books to readers. This year marks their 25th anniversary. Books+Publishing is the Australian book sector’s number one source for news, opinions, pre-publication reviews, jobs, and advertisements.

Category: ABIA