Amazon, which was silent about ``garbage books'' written by AI and sold under other people's names, raises its weight in response to the writer's union's appeal

There have been reports of books written by AI being sold under the name of unrelated authors on Amazon, and Amazon has taken a firm stance in response, saying, ``Unless the author's name is trademarked, the book cannot be deleted.'' I was taking it. However, it has been reported that as a result of the affected authors complaining about the situation on SNS, and the Authors Guild of America began providing support, Amazon began taking action.

Amazon Reverses Course on 'Garbage Books' After Public Uproar - Decrypt
https://decrypt.co/151780/amazon-authors-writers-fake-books-trademark

Jane Friedman, who has 25 years of experience in the publishing industry and is also a consultant, said in August 2023 that there are multiple books listed on Amazon with her name listed as the author, even though she is not related to the book. I'm accusing you. As a result of Mr. Friedman's strong condemnation of such books that deceive readers and put the authors at a disadvantage, calling them 'garbage books,' a few hours later, the book review site ' Goodreads ' operated by Amazon posted the corresponding trash. Book title has been removed. On the other hand, as a result of filing a complaint with Amazon, the only response they received was, ``Please let us know if you have a trademark registration number related to your claim,'' and the book was not deleted and remained on sale.

A report that a book written by AI is being sold under someone else's name on Amazon, the author whose name was used complains that ``In this case, it would be better if my book was distributed as a pirated copy'' - GIGAZINE

However, the day after Mr. Friedman made his accusation, some of the ``trash books'' bearing Mr. Friedman's name began to be removed from Amazon. Friedman commented, ``I believe that my name recognition and reputation in the writing and publishing community has influenced this deletion in no small part.''

On the same day, the Authors Guild of America issued a statement to Friedman saying, ``As members of the copyright union, we can sue on your behalf.'' 'It should be removed as a violation of the Lanham Act. We will be contacting Amazon executives (on behalf of the author) to inform them of this.'We fully support Friedman's lawsuit. expressed an attitude of

@JaneFriedman As a member of the Authors Guild, we can advocate on your behalf and are reaching out to senior management immediately to let them know that these works are an attempt to trade off your brand and must be removed as infringements of the Lanham Act.

— The Authors Guild (@AuthorsGuild) August 7, 2023

In response to Mr. Friedman's accusation, a joint statement was released by the technology media Decrypt and the Writers Guild of America. 'We have worked with Amazon on similar issues in the past, and we will continue our discussions to ensure interfaces and support are responsive as technology evolves,' the statement said. 'You can still benefit from your brand. If you see a book that does this, we encourage you to report it through Amazon Support.'

In response to Decrypt, Amazon spokesperson Ashley Banicek said in an email: 'Amazon has clear content guidelines governing what books can be listed for sale, and we immediately respond to any concerns that arise. 'We investigate books. We welcome feedback from authors and work directly with them to address issues they raise and correct any mistakes we make,' explained Amazon's stance. .

In September 2023, Amazon updated the content guidelines for Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), a service that allows self-publishing of e-books and paper books, in response to requests from the National Authors Association and others. We have added a clause that requires you to declare if you publish a book that contains generated content.

Amazon requires authors who publish ``AI-generated text,'' ``AI-generated images,'' and ``AI-translated text'' to declare the use of AI - GIGAZINE

However, not all 'garbage books' have been removed from Amazon. Author and poet Hattie Jean Hayes was also a victim of 'trash books,' with books for adults sold that used Hayes' name as the author, and also included Hayes's name in the story. They reported that a family member's name was used.

Sorry you're dealing with this. I have had someone using my name to publish erotica on Amazon/KDP for the last three years. It's pretty clearly a targeted attack since they've used names of my (minor!) family members in the stories. Amazon/Kindle gave me the exact same answer.

— Hattie! (@QueenHattieJean) August 8, 2023

Mr. Friedman reported that as of the morning after the accusation, ``The ``trash book'' I complained about had been deleted from Amazon,'' and said that he suspected that the same damage would occur again soon. ``While I had sufficient influence to receive prompt action, I would not be able to raise serious red flags if other authors were being victimized.'' 'I wonder if it's possible,' he said, expressing concern.

As of this morning, the books appear to have been removed from Amazon. How long until it happens again? What about authors who don't have the ability to raise a big red flag like I do? https://t.co/ jcDBFhWPNM

— Jane Friedman (@JaneFriedman) August 8, 2023

A spokesperson for the Authors Guild of America said, ``If it is not an obvious copyright violation, especially if the legal basis is not clear such as a trademark, it may be difficult to resolve it through Amazon's normal channels. , we need to improve our response to make it easier for authors to solve problems,'' he said, indicating his stance to support authors who fall victim to AI-based books or fraudulent books.