The answer is simple: the client, when it is a custom development and this is established in the rights assignment agreement.
The emergence of Artificial Intelligence in the production of training content has opened up enormous possibilities for companies.
Today it is possible to develop microlearning eLearning courses with high-quality virtual presenters, capable of communicating naturally, in dozens of languages, and with very short production times.
However, together with these advantages, a question is arising more and more frequently from Purchasing, Human Resources, and Legal departments:
If a course is developed using Artificial Intelligence avatars, does the intellectual property still belong to the client?
The answer is yes, as long as we are talking about a commissioned development, based on content owned by the client, and with the corresponding assignment of exploitation rights set out in the agreement.
At FIT Learning, this is precisely how we work on our custom production projects.
The intellectual property of an eLearning course does not depend on the tool used
At FIT Learning, we use professional audiovisual production platforms based on Artificial Intelligence, such as Synthesia and other equivalent technologies, to create high-quality training videos.
These tools make it possible to generate virtual presenters, voiceovers in multiple languages, and audiovisual content in an agile and efficient way.
Now, it is worth understanding what their role actually is.
Artificial Intelligence does not decide what should be taught.
It does not create the pedagogical content.
It does not draft the procedures.
It does not know how the organization works internally.
It does not design the learning objectives.
All of that work is still carried out by the client, who provides the knowledge, together with FIT Learning’s team of specialists, responsible for transforming that knowledge into an effective learning experience through analysis, instructional design, scriptwriting, audiovisual production, and eLearning development.
Consequently, AI is simply a production tool, just like a video editing program, a professional camera, or a graphic design software application.
It is exactly the same as hiring an actor or actress
The easiest way to understand it is to compare it with a traditional audiovisual production.
Let us suppose a company decides to produce a course using a professional actor.
That actor performs a script developed for the client.
Their image appears in the video.
Their voice is part of the content.
However, no one considers the actor to be the owner of the course.
The actor provides a professional service within an audiovisual production.
Likewise, exactly the same happens when we use an avatar generated through Artificial Intelligence.
The avatar replaces the actor as the presentation element, but the legal result is the same.
Neither does the actor acquire rights over the course for appearing in it, nor does the company providing the avatar technology acquire rights over the content for supplying the tool used to produce it.
In the same way that Adobe does not own a video edited with Premiere, Microsoft does not own a document written with Word, or Canon does not own a photograph taken with one of its cameras, an avatar generation platform does not become the owner of content developed using its technology either.
Therefore, the tool used to create a work does not determine who owns the rights to that work.
How do we work at FIT Learning?
In our custom production projects, we follow a very clear model.
The client provides:
- their procedures;
- their internal knowledge;
- their documentation;
- their manuals;
- their protocols;
- their corporate image;
- and all the information on which they want to build the training.
FIT Learning provides:
- pedagogical analysis;
- scriptwriting;
- instructional design;
- audiovisual production;
- editing;
- voiceover;
- avatar generation when requested by the client;
- integration of the content into the most appropriate eLearning format.
Once the project is completed and in accordance with the agreement, FIT Learning expressly assigns the exploitation rights over the developed course to the client, allowing them to use it within the scope provided for in the agreement.
For that reason, the use of virtual avatars does not alter that rights assignment framework in any way.
If you want to learn more about our custom production approach, you can see it in SmartContent and in the way we work on personalized training projects.
The use of avatars does not change the assignment of rights
Sometimes, some organizations show concern because platforms such as Synthesia are involved in the production process.
It is a logical question.
The answer, however, is simple.
Synthesia, or any other similar professional platform, provides technology used under a commercial license.
FIT Learning holds those licenses in order to develop content for its clients.
The platform does not participate in the design of the course.
It does not intervene in the definition of the content.
It does not provide the client’s knowledge.
It does not acquire rights over the final result.
Ultimately, its function is exactly the same as that of any other professional tool used during an audiovisual production.
In addition, you can better understand how we apply AI to training in content such as AI-powered learning support or in our learning ecosystem approach.
The advantages of using AI avatars
In addition to maintaining the same legal guarantees as a traditional production, the use of avatars offers important benefits for organizations:
- significant reduction in production times;
- the possibility of updating content in a matter of hours;
- generation of versions in multiple languages without the need to organize new shoots;
- a consistent image across all corporate training;
- cost reduction compared with productions using actors;
- scalability for future developments.
All of this without altering the rights regime over the developed content.
To better understand how this type of technology licensing works, you can also consult information from Synthesia as a technology provider for audiovisual creation.
Our commitment
At FIT Learning, we believe that innovation must always go hand in hand with legal certainty and transparency.
For that reason, in all our custom developments, when the client provides the knowledge and content on which the training is built, we contractually include an express assignment of the exploitation rights over the developed course, in accordance with current legislation and the scope agreed between both parties.
The use of Artificial Intelligence technologies, including virtual avatars, constitutes only a technical means of production and does not alter or limit the assignment of rights contractually agreed.
Ultimately, our clients can benefit from all the advantages offered by Artificial Intelligence to produce high-quality training, with the peace of mind of knowing that the use of these technologies does not condition the future exploitation of the content developed for their organization.
Because tools evolve, but our commitment remains the same: to develop innovative, secure training solutions fully aligned with the needs of each client.
