**â??Give me my faceâ?â?¦ Controversy over virtual human, human model copyright infringement**
A model and actor in his 30s, whom I met last month, said, “My face and expression were stolen by a virtual human.” He responded to filming for the production of a ‘virtual human’ model draft in January, but only recently found out that a virtual human that looks just like him had been created.
At the time of making the draft, Mr. A was paid 1.4 million won for two days and was surrounded by hundreds of cameras installed in 360 degrees. At that time, he said that he thought it was just a video for reference. However, the production company used AI (artificial intelligence) to create a virtual human that detailed not only the shape of Mr. A’s face but also the movements of hundreds of facial muscles. It is said that the scope of use of virtual humans was also notified unilaterally by saying, â??It will be expanded to include pictorials and social media activitiesâ? from the original ‘music video appearance’. Person A said, “The fact that a virtual human who copied my face is active is terrifying,” and said, “I was robbed of the assets I had accumulated as a model.”
As the creation of virtual human models spreads like a fad, cases like Mr. A are being violated. Even in the legal world, the extent to which the rights of models should be protected in the process of creating virtual humans is controversial. Lee Yoo-jeong, a lawyer at ONE Law Firm, said, “If the identity of the model and the virtual human is recognized, it can be said that the right to personality and the right to portrait is violated. â? he says.
A sense of crisis is also spreading among models and actors that virtual humans are already replacing them. This is because first-generation virtual humans such as Rosie, who debuted as a model in July last year, took over the advertising world, and new virtual humans this year are taking over the industry by expanding their activities to singers, actors, anchors, and show hosts. Kim Rae-ah, a virtual human created by LG Electronics, is scheduled to debut as a singer this year, and Han Yu-ah, a virtual human of the game company Smilegate, recently signed an exclusive contract with YG K+ and is about to release her music. Lina, developed by Netmarble, will appear in various metaverse contents.
There is also a concern that in the model and actor industry where competition for work is fierce, there will be more cases of unfairly mobilized to create virtual humans in the future. In the process of creating an AI model, I think that it is ultimately the responsibility of companies to make sure that no one’s right to personality is violated.
https://www.chosun.com/economy/tech_it/2022/04/04/VINLSHCHYJHWZI5T5MHNYYKFGA/