“The need to do this is unfortunately part and parcel of doing business online,” she noted. “It is also worth bearing in mind that copyright can be registered in China and the USA, and doing so can be very helpful when enforcing copyright in those markets.”

Rutter gave her statements in reaction to a recent report about a copy of a poster made by New Zealand cartoonist and illustrator Giselle Clarkson that was sold on the ecommerce platform Temu. Titled “Fish Species of New Zealand,” the poster was being sold on Temu for NZ$7.44 (US$4.24). However, the endemicworld art gallery in Ponsonby, Auckland, is also selling Clarkson’s work with a NZ$59 (US$34) price tag.

“We take intellectual property concerns seriously. After receiving your inquiry, we promptly investigated and removed the listing in question,” a representative of Temu told rnz.co.nz, the website of Radio New Zealand. “We’ve also added the artist’s works to our database for proactive monitoring.”

Rutter said the sale of pirated copies of artworks on online platforms isn’t new. Rutter herself has dealt with such cases several times in the past few years. What she anticipates, however, is how AI is going to impact the copyright landscape: Will AI tools exacerbate the problem?

“The good news is that AI tools can also help brand owners locate and deal with piracy. Most companies who offer online brand tracking and anti-piracy services are using AI to improve the accuracy and speed of their tools, so the weapons available to fight online piracy are improving too,” she shared.

“The IP owners and organizations who have worked tirelessly for years to hold online platforms like Alibaba and others to account have also made great progress. Many platforms have effective takedown processes,” Rutter added. 

- Espie Angelica A. de Leon