The SPUR Coalition
Shaping the rules, standards and infrastructure that enable publishers and AI platforms to do business.
Founding members
Our mission
Fair, transparent terms for journalism in the age of AI
SPUR — the Standards for Publisher Usage Rights coalition — is a non-profit coalition of news publishers established to shape the technical and commercial environment within which IP owners can control and monitor the use of their content by generative AI applications.
Professionally produced journalism is being used for AI training, fine-tuning and real-time grounding without common standards for permission or payment. SPUR develops shared technical standards and responsible licensing frameworks so that AI developers can access high-quality, reliable journalism in legitimate and convenient ways, while publishers retain practical control of their content and receive fair value when it is used.
What we do
The coalition's work
- 01
Shared standards
Develop shared industry standards, creating responsible pathways for original journalism to be used sustainably.
- 02
Licensing without friction
Reduce friction in licensing and bridge the gap between publishers and AI developers.
- 03
Tools to protect IP
Identify gaps in the technical tools needed to protect intellectual property, and support their creation.
- 04
Rights-cleared access
Ensure high-value content can be accessed through rights-cleared, accountable channels.
- 05
Infrastructure that works
Evaluate existing industry infrastructure and assess where new technologies or approaches are needed.
- 06
Transparency at scale
Enable transparent, scalable use of journalistic content.
Latest
News
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The SPUR Coalition welcomes 30 new members
A major international expansion announced at the World News Media Congress in Marseille brings the coalition to 36 publishers and affiliate organisations.
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Mediahuis joins the SPUR Coalition as founding member
Mediahuis, one of Europe's leading news publishers, joins the BBC, Financial Times, Guardian Media Group, Sky News and Telegraph Media Group as a founding member.
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An open letter to our fellow leaders in global media
The leaders of the BBC, Financial Times, The Guardian, Sky News and Telegraph Media Group invite global media organisations to join a new coalition.
Join us
Open to journalism organisations worldwide
SPUR brings together 37 publishers and affiliate organisations from across the global journalism sector. Membership is open to organisations globally whose primary activity is the creation of original journalism; trade bodies can apply for affiliate membership.