The IPTC has published version 2.0 of its guidelines, providing updated pathways for publishers to opt out from unauthorised content use by AI engines.
Access the updated guidelines here on the IPTC website.
This version addresses the rapidly evolving AI landscape by incorporating two protocols introduced in late 2025:
The new version also includes some formatting changes to make the recommendations easier to understand and implement, and adds a chapter with suggested User Agent IDs to use in robots.txt files.
While the IPTC continues to advocate for a formal global standard through the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), these guidelines provide a practical, immediate framework for publishers to protect their rights today.
The IPTC advocates for a usable, practical AI usage protocol to be explicitly acknowledged by law… we have created this guidance document to show how current technologies can be used to reserve the rights of content creators.
The IPTC has joined the IETF AI Preferences Working Group to ensure the interests of rights holders are represented. This comes at a critical time: as the Open Future Foundation’s January 2026 study highlights, the group faces significant challenges in reaching an agreed position. Without active participation from the media and content industries, there is a risk that the final specification will fail to address the sector’s specific requirements.
In the absence of a formal industry standard, RSL or Content Signals may become de facto solutions. While these proprietary technologies may offer short-term utility for the content industry, the IPTC believes that a formal, open standard is a better long-term outcome. A multi-stakeholder process via an organisation such as the IETF ensures that the needs of all parties — publishers, rights holders, AI developers, tech platforms and civil society — are balanced in a transparent and sustainable way.
CEPIC continues to support practical solutions that help rights holders protect their content in the age of AI. Alongside IPTC's updated guidance, we encourage members to explore the CEPIC AI Opt-Out Guidelines, which provide additional context and support for implementing these measures within your workflows.
In September 2025, CEPIC partnered with IPTC to host a dedicated webinar, Understanding IPTC Guidelines to Opt-Out of AI, led by Brendan Quinn. The session offered a practical walkthrough of the guidelines, how to implement them, and what they mean for visual content providers navigating the evolving AI landscape.
CEPIC is always keen to collaborate with industry experts, organisations, and members to create webinars that help navigate key topics like AI, copyright, and the future of visual media. If you would like to hear more from IPTC or are interested in partnering on a webinar, we’d love to hear from you. Please get in touch with the team.