May 8, 2026
“The Digital Creators Coalition applauds this year’s Special 301 Report, which clearly conveys the US Government’s strong commitment to promoting the US creative community and protecting the copyrights on which it relies. We are particularly encouraged by the Administration’s reaffirmation that copyright must be respected in the AI context and support for voluntary licensing for the use of copyrighted works in AI development. The DCC also values the Report's inclusion of creative community concerns regarding overbroad copyright exceptions. We strongly oppose such exceptions, including for so-called text and data mining for the use of copyrighted works without authorization for the training of AI models. We thank those from USTR and all agencies for working tirelessly to produce this Report, continuing a long tradition of US leadership for and dedication to American creators.”
The DCC consists of member organizations that represent individual creators, independent producers, small-and-medium-size enterprises, large businesses, and workers from across the American copyright-based creative sectors, including movies, music, television, illustrators, photographers, authors, publishers, and fans as well as news, magazine and digital media. We are committed to advancing the interests of the creative community in the digital environment and are united in our resolve that strong copyright protection for American creators should be a top priority for US international engagement and economic diplomacy. For more information, visit digitalcreatorscoalition.org/.