Taylor Swift Files Trademark Applications for Voice and Image to Combat AI Deepfakes
Taylor Swift filed trademark applications for two audio clips and one photograph with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Friday, seeking to protect her voice and likeness from AI-generated deepfakes. The applications list Swift's TAS Rights Management as the owner.
The audio clips contain Swift introducing her album "The Life of a Showgirl" on Amazon Music Unlimited and Spotify. The image shows Swift onstage in a sequined outfit holding a pink guitar.
Filling a Legal Gap
Trademark attorney Josh Gerben said the filings target a gap in existing copyright law. While copyright protects recorded music, AI can now generate entirely new audio that mimics an artist's voice without copying an existing recording.
"Registering a celebrity's spoken voice is a new use of trademark registration that has not been tested in courts," Gerben wrote on his blog.
Existing right of publicity laws offer some protection against unauthorized use of a person's likeness, but trademark registration provides an additional layer. The photograph filing protects Swift's distinctive visual elements-her commonly worn jumpsuit and pose-giving her grounds to pursue claims against manipulated or AI-generated images.
Precedent in Entertainment
Actor Matthew McConaughey obtained similar trademark approvals. He told the Wall Street Journal in January that the goal is to "create a clear perimeter around ownership with consent and attribution the norm in an AI world."
Swift's voice and image have appeared in numerous AI deepfakes, ranging from false advertising to fabricated political endorsements to explicit imagery.
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