By Sara Guaglione |
Collaborative Efforts to Standardize AI Content Licensing
A growing coalition of publishers has embraced the Really Simple Licensing (RSL) Collective’s AI licensing framework, aiming to establish a uniform system that clearly defines how AI platforms can access and compensate for publisher content. Notable media companies such as Arena Group, BuzzFeed Company, USA Today Company, and Vox Media have recently aligned with this initiative, signaling a significant industry shift toward structured AI content usage agreements.
Expanding Partnerships and the RSL Collective’s Mission
Doug Leeds, co-founder of the RSL Collective, revealed that the organization now boasts over 50 partners. Early adopters included People Inc., Ziff Davis (Yahoo), Medium, Quora, Reddit, and Yahoo. Since its launch in September 2025, the RSL Collective has maintained an open partnership model, encouraging broad participation without exclusivity.
The core objective of the RSL Collective is to prevent unauthorized AI scraping of publisher websites, ensuring content creators receive fair compensation. Unlike traditional robots.txt files that simply allow or block crawlers, the RSL Protocol enables publishers to embed machine-readable licensing terms directly into their site infrastructure. These terms specify usage rights, payment conditions, and royalty arrangements, creating a transparent and automated licensing environment.
Innovative Licensing Models and Industry Collaborations
Under the RSL framework, publishers can request AI companies to pay fees based on the number of crawls or inferences made using their content. To facilitate this, the RSL Collective has partnered with Fastly, a leading content delivery network (CDN), to enable licensed AI bots to access participating websites seamlessly.
Lark Marie Anton, Chief Communications Officer at USA Today Company, emphasized the importance of clear attribution and equitable remuneration, stating that the company is actively exploring all avenues to uphold journalistic integrity and ensure fair value for its content across the industry.
Parallel to RSL’s efforts, the IAB Tech Lab has convened a working group comprising publishers and technology firms to develop the Content Monetization Protocols framework. Fastly also supports this initiative. Additionally, Cloudflare introduced a Content Signals Policy in September 2025, allowing publishers to communicate their preferences regarding AI crawler usage via robots.txt, complementing its AI bot blocking tools launched earlier that summer.
Synergy Between Licensing Standards and Challenges Ahead
Contrary to competition, RSL and the IAB Tech Lab collaborate to harmonize their standards, aiming for complementary solutions that benefit the publishing ecosystem. However, a significant hurdle remains: these frameworks lack enforcement mechanisms and rely heavily on voluntary compliance by AI companies.
While these standards empower publishers with leverage, their effectiveness depends on AI firms’ willingness to honor the agreements. The collective pressure from major digital media players is expected to encourage adherence, but the path to universal compliance is still uncertain.
Industry Perspectives on Licensing Compliance and Future Outlook
Eric Aledort of Arena Group acknowledged the limitations of voluntary frameworks but expressed optimism about RSL’s approach and the backing from prominent publishers. “Supporting initiatives that help publishers sustain their operations is essential,” he remarked, highlighting the pragmatic decision to participate.
Anthony Katsur, CEO of IAB Tech Lab, pointed out that large language models (LLMs) have a vested interest in avoiding complex negotiations with countless individual sites and the risk of being blocked. This practical incentive could drive AI companies toward embracing standardized licensing agreements over time.
Doug Leeds echoed this sentiment, describing the licensing process as a “win-win” scenario. Without collective licensing, AI companies would face the impractical task of negotiating contracts individually with thousands of publishers. The RSL Collective aims to function similarly to established digital rights organizations like ASCAP, streamlining royalty collection and distribution at scale.
Looking Ahead: Enforcement, Global Reach, and Revenue Models
Leeds remains unfazed by the current lack of AI company compliance, viewing the RSL standard as a tool to reduce licensing friction and costs. He anticipates that enforcement will emerge through a combination of technical solutions, regulatory frameworks, and legal actions involving CDNs, courts, and government bodies.
“AI firms could access all necessary content worldwide through a single licensing agreement,” Leeds explained, emphasizing the need for a global footprint rather than a U.S.-centric approach. The RSL Collective is prioritizing supply-side scalability before engaging the demand side, with plans to unveil a public licensing contract by the end of 2025.
Founded as a nonprofit by Leeds, a former CEO of IAC Publishing and Ask.com, alongside Eckart Walther, co-creator of the Really Simple Syndication (RSS) standard, the RSL Collective has yet to generate revenue. However, it recently onboarded an economist to design a revenue-sharing model, likely involving percentage-based royalties with minimum thresholds, akin to those used by Spotify and Apple. The model will reflect the varying value publishers provide to AI companies, much like how artists receive different payments depending on the context of their music’s use.
