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CEO Robert Thomson Photo by Patrick T. Fallon/AFPCanada has been a leader on smart media policy, but when it comes to reining in the theft of news content by artificial intelligence companies, it has been a laggard. Under its laissez-faire approach to date, the theft of news content is happening on an industrial scale.Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorAgainst this backdrop, over the past couple years, several large leading Canadian companies have entered into strategic partnerships with AI companies. Some have done so with great fanfare, making bold claims of sovereign AI. But the sellers didn’t create that content, nor did they licence it. They stole it and are passing it off as their own creation.Corporate Canada’s chief legal officers, chief financial officers and chief corporate communications officers should carefully study the legal strategy unleashed by Robert Thomson, chief executive officer of News Corp.The National Post newsletter that doesn’t hold back, giving readers the unvarnished truth on media, politics and culture.By signing up, you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Right? will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againDuring the news giant’s latest earnings call, Thomson told investors he expects “compelling, cash-rich” revenue from its legal war on AI — and that he’s stepping up the fight. He will now be suing not only the tech firms that scrape News Corp.’s journalism, but the customers who buy the stolen intellectual property, too.He’s escalating his combative “woo and sue” doctrine. It’s seen him licence news to those who pay, and drag those who don’t into court for years. Litigation “is far from over,” he promised, adding that existing suits were spawning what he called “cash-rich legal sequels.”And he put browser company Brave in the crosshairs next saying it was “brave in name only.”And anyone purchasing News Corp.’s scraped content “should know that they are in possession of stolen goods,” he warned. “This will certainly not be the last litigation related to AI,” he told investors at its latest earnings call. “We’re focusing not just on companies that have scraped and stolen our content, but on their clients who knowingly or unknowingly have purchased stolen goods.”Thomson’s outspoken attack on Brave is the latest salvo in an increasingly fierce fight with the privacy-first browser, but it was Brave that went to court first.In March 2025, News Corp.’s lawyers fired off a cease-and-desist accusing Brave of infringement, threatening legal action and demanding compensation.Brave ran to court and urged the judge to throw it out, using America’s fair use exemption on copyright. Brave’s lawyers cast the Murdoch empire as the aggressor, accusing it of “an anticompetitive bullying campaign, built on an incorrect legal premise.”It argued News Corp. was waging a war on privacy by going after the little guy while partnering with search giant Google.Last month, News Corp. returned fire, branding Brave’s “covert scraping” as “flagrant theft.”Its counter-suit alleged Brave used masked crawlers to dodge being blocked, then resold News Corp.’ articles and IP to AI firms.“The more content Brave copies and sells, the more revenue it generates, and the less incentive AI companies have to negotiate licenses with the publishers who produced the content,” the suit argued. “Brave profits while publishers are cut out.”News Corp. has sought an injunction and up to $150,000 per infringement.Thomson branded Brave’s conduct content laundering and “tacky tech trafficking” that “must come to an end if journalism is to have a sustainable future.” He doubled down: “Their scheming started with masked web crawlers scanning our pages to ingest copyrighted articles and continued when they repackaged those stolen files and delivered near verbatim copies.”Then he upped the ante by widening the threat to Brave’s customers. “Companies who buy from these pirates should know that they are in possession of stolen goods” — opening a new front for more claims for damages.Thomson flagged that damages from legal actions were now seen as a revenue stream for News Corp., as the AI economy emerges.The boards of directors of large Canadian public companies should be asking tough questions of management. Are you buying stolen IP? What due diligence did you do? What is our legal exposure? What is our financial exposure? What is the risk to our brand and reputation? Canada’s federally regulated industries should not be doing business with pirates. Ignorance is not bliss. Canadian IP must be protected.National PostRicky Sutton, a former media executive, is the author of Future Media, a Substack reporting on the collision of Big Tech and Big Media. Join the Conversation This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.