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Meta asserts fair use for distributing pirated books in US copyright case

By Emma Whitford ( March 3, 2026, 23:18 GMT | Comment) -- Meta Platforms is seeking a broad application of the US's first ruling that downloading pirated books for artificial intelligence training is fair use, arguing that any distribution of such works through torrenting also serves a transformative purpose, and is therefore justified. In doing so, the social media giant is suggesting that sharing pirated content can be legal — an argument that fell flat for Napster in the early 2000s. Meta Platforms is seeking a broad application of the United States’ first ruling that downloading pirated books for artificial intelligence training is fair, arguing that any distribution of such works through torrenting also serves a transformative purpose, and is therefore justified....

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