Voicing Concern About AI; Call for Urgent Action in Australian Voice Over Industry

Australia's voice-over industry is facing a highly disruptive threat from Artificial Intelligence (AI) which is capable of harvesting, repurposing and exploiting voices without consent or compensation. This concerning development has highlighted the urgent need to improve copyright laws and install effective measures to protect voice artists' rights and livelihoods as well as combat deep fakes and scammers preying on the broader community.

In recent weeks, the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) convened meetings with voice artists and their agents following the discovery of an Australian YouTube animation using artificially generated voice-over tracks. Jonathon Green, Managing Director of leading voice-over actor agency EM Voices, expressed the industry's concerns and the inadequacy of current tools to address this issue effectively. 

"The human voice is a signature item, like a fingerprint," Green emphasised. "Each voice is unique and native to an individual. It's their copyright, their essence, their identity. AI should not be able to copy a person's voice for commercial gain without consent or proper compensation."

The misuse of voices through AI technology poses serious threats to artists' rights, leaves corporate clients exposed to copyright claims, and has increased the dangers of voices being misused for criminal activities, with scammers rampantly exploiting the technology. 

To address these challenges, an independent organisation, The Australian Association of Voice Actors (AAVA) was recently established to preserve the viability of the Voice Acting profession. AAVA lobbies government, unions, and industry on behalf of all concerned parties and is already gaining traction with its first major campaign, Ai - Your Voice Your Choice, which pushes for protections and legislation of AI technology in the voice-acting sphere. 

Simon Kennedy, president of AAVA, states that its primary goal is to advocate and support the human Voice Acting community.

"AAVA will assess the ever-changing landscape and fight for changes to preserve and grow the Voice Acting sector and actively engage with Government officials, policymakers, industry associations, and the MEAA to advocate for these changes. AAVA will strive to enhance the Voice Acting industry through advocacy, education, inclusivity, industry recognition, and proactive measures. We represent the voices people trust and trust is priceless in this digital age."

With current avenues to remedy misuse of voices rendered ineffective, Jonathon Green, Managing Director of EM Voices, stressed the need for a top-down approach imploring governments to update copyright law to support the regulation and prosecution of illegal use of AI-generated voices. 

"Regulation, impact assessment and avenues for prosecution against those misusing intellectual property are crucial," he said. "Let's not repeat the mistakes of the past. Somebody like Taylor Swift, who was cloned and deepfaked, has an army of followers who are prepared to fight for her. But most artists don't - they rely on laws and channels of prosecution for people who misuse their copyright material. So let's get the legislation and regulation in place, while we still have the time."

About EM Voices:

Australia's most successful, exclusive voice-over artist agency represents the nation's top voices across a wide range of styles, ages, accents, characters and languages. Standing alongside other industry stakeholders, EM Voices is committed to supporting MEAA's initiatives and asserting voice artists' rights by advocating for legal solutions to protect against the misuse of proprietary material by AI technology.