What damages are WSJ and NY Post seeking from Perplexity?

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The Wall Street Journal and New York Post Seek Significant Damages from Perplexity AI for Copyright Infringement

The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post are seeking substantial statutory damages, up to US$150,000 per infringement, along with injunctive relief, from Perplexity AI. The publishers also requested the destruction of any databases containing their copyrighted works, alleging that Perplexity illegally copied and reproduced their content to power its AI-driven search engine.
Allegations of Illegal Copying and Reproduction

The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in New York, accuses Perplexity AI of unlawfully copying and reproducing copyrighted material from both The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post. This alleged infringement is central to the publishers' claim that Perplexity has built its "answer engine" by leveraging their protected content without proper authorization.
Claims of Business Model Disruption and Revenue Diversion

According to the legal complaint, Perplexity's business model constitutes "massive freeriding" on the publishers' intellectual property. The lawsuit alleges that Perplexity's approach diverts readers and revenue away from content creators, unlike traditional search engines that drive traffic to source websites. The publishers contend that Perplexity usurps monetization opportunities that rightfully belong to content creators.
Demand for Destruction of Infringing Databases

In addition to financial penalties, the plaintiffs are demanding the complete destruction of any database that holds their copyrighted works. This seeks to prevent Perplexity from continuing to use the allegedly infringing material in its operations and to ensure that the unauthorized reproduction of their content ceases entirely.
Background of Similar Legal Actions

This action by The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post follows similar allegations made by The New York Times, which had previously sent a cease and desist letter to Perplexity. Furthermore, The New York Times itself initiated a lawsuit against OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, on grounds of stealing copyrighted material for AI training. News Corp, the parent company of The Wall Street Journal and the Post, has reportedly entered into a content agreement with OpenAI, and the suit notes that Perplexity allegedly ignored requests to form similar partnerships.

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What damages are WSJ and NY Post seeking from Perplexity?

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